


The Price of Being a Host

by sweet_cottontail



Category: Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canonical Child Abuse, F/F, F/M, Homophobia, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-15
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-02-21 08:20:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 32,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2461334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweet_cottontail/pseuds/sweet_cottontail
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Ouran Host Club begins suffering financial troubles after the fight of the Hitachiin twins, so Renge makes the brilliant suggestion of bringing in new hosts to appeal to a wider range of customers. With the addition of female hosts as well as a new male host, both the boys and girls of Ouran come flooding in. But with jealousy, scandals, and an arranged marriage added to the mix, will the club last?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

_“Boys, I’m sure you’re wondering why  I've  asked for you.” ‘The maid said he wanted to speak to us about expectations’ “We need to talk about the expectations I have for you as members of the Ootori family.” ‘My brothers already have everything perfect, so this  isn't  for them. It’s only for me.’_

_‘The lectures are always just for me.’_

_Yoshio Ootori pushed his glasses back up against his face and scanned over his three sons, his eyes residing on Kyouya for an uncomfortable three seconds. “As I’m sure you already know,” he continued, turning his gaze back down to his lap, “you have a certain dignity to uphold as members of the Ootori family. Everything and anything we do is in the public eye, and therefore any mistake you made will not be tolerated.” He turned his gaze to Kyouya again. “Is that understood?”_

_“Yes, father,” the elder Ootori sons replied. A silence settled as Yoshio awaited Kyouya’s answer._

_“Kyouya,” Yoshio said, leaning forward in his chair, “am I understood?”_

_Kyouya met his father’s stare and pushed his identical glasses back up the bridge of his nose. “What exactly do you qualify as a mistake, father?” The room suddenly felt uncomfortably small and Kyouya’s brothers turned their gaze away from the youngest son._

_Yoshio glared and sat up straight in the seat. “I’m sure you’re smart enough to figure that out on your own, Kyouya,” he condescended. “It  doesn't  need explaining.”_

_“That is true, but I want you to explain it, father,” he retorted. “Perhaps one of us had done something without you knowing? How would we know it was a mistake if you  didn't  clarify your expectations?”_

_There was a short pause. Yoshio’s fingers popped as they clenched into a fist, causing the elder Ootori’s to sink back into the sofa. After another uncomfortable moment of silence Yoshio spoke again, his voice trembling with anger._

_“You are forbidden to participate in any activity that will disgrace the Ootori Group,” he said, “not limited to committing a crime, causing problems with partners of the company, and creating scandals.” Now, all eyes were on Kyouya. “I will not repeat myself this time. Am I clear?”_

_“Yes father,” the boys answered._

_Yoshi sighed and stood from his chair, his fist still clenched at his side. “Good. You are dismissed.” The boys nodded and stood, walking towards the stairs. “Not you, Kyouya.” The youngest boy came to a halt, his back to his father. His brothers kept walking away, never looking back._

_“Come here,” Yoshio ordered. Kyouya obeyed. “Never disrespect me in front of your brothers again. Do you understand?” Kyouya nodded. “I must make sure you understand.”_

_Kyouya removed his glasses as his father’s hand rose, and he prepared for the impact._

  _Their maid  didn't  flinch at the echoed slap from down the hall._


	2. New Hosts?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit: The trip the hosts were saving up for has been changed to a trip to the beach because they already live in Tokyo (a detail we didn't bother to look up before starting this chapter). But it has been fixed to make more sense now!

“Kyouya! Kyouya, you there? Earth to Kyouya!”

Tamaki Suoh’s obnoxious voice echoed throughout the unused music room, snapping Kyouya out of his thoughts. ‘Again with the daydreaming,’ he thought to himself. ‘This is getting rather irritating.’ “What is it Tamaki?” He asked, rubbing his temples.

Tamaki grinned and leaned on the back of Kyouya’s chair. “You were gazing off into the distance again,” he said, his violet eyes sparkling with curiosity. “I’ve noticed you doing that a lot lately; I mean a _whole_ lot. What are you thinking about?” He walked around to lean against the table, giving Kyouya his signature puppy-dog eyes. “Is it a special surprise you’re planning? Or maybe,” he leaned dangerously close to the brunet, “you’re in love! Is Mommy finally in love?!”

“Don’t be stupid!” Kyouya gently shoved Tamaki off of the table, causing the blond to face-plant. “I was just thinking, something you are unfamiliar with, _Daddy_.”

Within moments, Tamaki was huddled in his dark corner, sulking and muttering, “Mommy’s so mean,” like a mantra. ‘He’s such a child,’ Kyouya thought.

“Will you two stop flirting,” Haruhi Fujioka—first-year scholarship student and host-club ‘dog’—teased. “I thought you called us here for an important meeting.” Her gaze caught sight of the disheveled Tamaki in the corner of the music room. “What’s wrong with Tamaki-senpai?” She asked, afraid of the answer.

“Don’t mind him,” Kyouya sighed as he sat down at the head of a long dining table. “Anyway, we have club business to take care of, with or without Tamaki’s participation.” Haruhi simply nodded and sat at the table next to Kyouya. The rest of the members made their way into the club room and sat at the table. Eventually Tamaki got a grip on himself and sat across from Haruhi, a dark cloud still hanging over his head.

“Alright,” Kaoru Hitachiin started, “so what’s this meeting about anyway?”

“I thought we’ve already planned out the next week’s activities,” Hikaru Hitachiin continued.

“We _did_ have events planned for this week,” Kyouya explained. “However, thanks to the little fight between you two, we’ve had a major setback in the club’s profits.” From his book bag, Kyouya pulled out a long receipt that made everyone at the table—save for Mori—gape in shock. “We’ve had to spend a percentage of our earnings paying for damaged property, and we weren’t able to make most of it back thanks to customers losing interest after the trouble you three caused.”

“What?” The twins questioned in unison. “You _three_?”

“I thought you forgave me for that, Senpai!” Haruhi snapped. “I told you already, that wasn’t my fault! It was just a throw-away comment!”

“Be that as it may, you still are part of the reason our profits are down, and are therefore responsible for this decline in revenue,” Kyouya said, stone-cold stoic as usual. “As punishment, I’ve already added a cut of the payment to your debt, so that’s another ¥20,000.”

Haruhi growled and sank down into her chair.

Honey hugged Usa-chan against his chest and stared wide-eyed at the Shadow King. “So what does this mean for the club, Kyou-chan?” He asked.

Kyouya stuffed the receipt back into his bag. “It means that some of the club activities will have to be cut out for the week,” he sighed. “So I’m afraid our group trip to the beach will have to be pushed back until further notice.”

“What?!” Tamaki cried. “But we’ve been saving for that trip for months! Now how is Haruhi ever going to get to see the lovely sand and surf and the sun set upon the ocean?! She’ll be so deprived, all because of a harmless comment she made!”

Haruhi sank further into her chair.

“That ‘harmless comment’,” Kyouya sneered, “cost us most of the trip’s money, as well as money for the week’s snacks.” The hosts’ eyes grew wide with panic—again, save for Mori. “I’m afraid we’ll have to cut down on our sweets for the week as well.”

A horrifying silence passed before Honey started erupting in a fit of tears. “No, not the snacks! Anything but that!!” He cried as Mori tried to calm him down. “Isn’t there anything we can do, Kyou-chan?!”

“If you come up with any ideas, feel free to let me know,” Kyouya said. “The picture books and online bids are our only source of income at the moment. Unless we can get more customers, this is the only way to keep the club from going bankrupt.”

A collective sigh of disappointment fell over the club members. The host club finances had never been this low before, and for the first time, the boys felt what it was like to be _poor_ ; just the thought of it made them cringe. But if saving money and letting go of certain amenities was what they had to do to stay afloat, then so be it.

“Well,” Tamaki sighed, “I suppose we’ll just have to live this _poor_ lifestyle until our profits get back on track.” Haruhi rolled her eyes, but still nodded in agreement along with the others. “It’s just a risk we’ll have to take.”

“Not necessarily.” The others turned to look at Kaoru. “If you think about it, one of the things that boosted profits last time we were having money trouble was the addition of Haruhi. Adding another host to the mix really boosted customer quota and allowed more variety amongst the group.”

“Wait,” Haruhi said, “so you’re suggesting that we bring in another host?”

“Why stop at just one?” Hikaru piped in. “Perhaps two or three new hosts. The more the merrier, right?” The twins looked at each other and nodded, satisfied with themselves.

Tamaki’s bright smile once again returned. “I think that’s a brilliant idea!” He exclaimed. “We could have a group of new young men that I could personally train to be high-end gentlemen! I could train them to perfect their arch types, how to use proper manners and etiquette when speaking to the ladies, and they would all address me as their King. I will lead them to the pinnacle of perfection and make everyone happier! Long live the Host King!”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Kyouya said. Tamaki froze in disappointment. “Adding more hosts into the mix would just throw off the system. We would have too many hosts of the same type, and the girls would get bored. Besides, training them would take up too much time that we don’t have.” Tamaki frowned and gave Kyouya his pleading eyes again. “I’m sorry, Tamaki,” the Shadow King said, “but my mind is made up. There is nothing we can gain from adding any more hosts to the mix.”

“Au contraire!” From out of the floor, a spinning circular platform rose above the host club. Atop the pedestal was Renge Houshakuji, dressed in a radiant, bright-pink Victorian dress with a matching parasol. “Perhaps the Hitachiin brothers are on to something! A new group of hosts is just what we need to spice things up around here! We have to start appealing to a larger number of Ouran’s population. I’ve been looking around the club over the last weeks I’ve been here, and I’ve noticed something _you_ hardly pay attention to; the wallflowers!” The club all stared at her, confused. “The girls at this school who stand idly by and watch the club activities, obviously! And out of all the people I’ve stared at, there is one thing they have in common in their eyes, and that is envy—sad, seething, heart-wrenching envy!”

“I still don’t understand where you’re going with this,” the Hitachiins said.

“That’s because I wasn’t finished!!” Renge growled. “Anyway, the wallflowers are all staring enviously, not at the hosts, but at the other girl’s that have the boy’s attention and not theirs! If we want to boost club profit, there is one thing the club needs! We need lesbians!!” As she said the word ‘lesbians’, confetti sprinkled down from the ceiling, onto the hosts staring blankly up at Renge. The fluttering of paper was the only sound that filled the room for a long while.

“Interesting notion,” Kyouya said, breaking the silence. The others turned to look at him. “I suppose we have been ignoring our homosexual community at Ouran. If we do expand our hosts to women for women, we would bring in a new group of students _and_ gain esteem with most LGBT groups in the area as well.”

“Not just that,” Honey said, “but we could have more boys just for the boys too! And maybe some flip-flop so we have the popular people for both boys and girls!” Mori nodded in agreement.

“That is true.” Tamaki sighed and leaned against the closest pillar. “But having a _lady_ as a host would be just demeaning. A women shouldn’t just put her heart out there for men only to have no intention of giving it away! The female heart is a sacred vessel, only meant to be taken by their one true love, and suggesting otherwise is preposterous and demeaning to the idea of love!”

“Okay, now you’re just being stupid,” Haruhi said, making Tamaki plummet off his high-horse. “If you boys can do that to the girls who come as customers, why can’t girls do it for the male or female customers here? You’re projecting a double-standard, Senpai.”

With tears in his eyes, Tamaki tried to pull Haruhi into hug. “I’m sorry, Haruhi, but you know that Daddy’s only trying to do what’s best for y-“

“Besides,” she interrupted, “Kyouya-sempai’s right; it will bring more money and customers to the club. And it just might give the students at this school a chance to find loves of their own that they wouldn’t normally find without the help of our new additions.” Haruhi looked between Kyouya and Renge with a smile. “I think it’s a great idea.”

“Well,” Hikaru said, “I suppose it would be interesting to be hosts to men,” Kaoru finished.

“Yeah!” Honey cheered. “And we get to keep the sweets now!” Mori smiled up at Honey and nodded in agreement.

Tamaki knew that there was no swaying them now. “Okay, fine!” He groaned. “We can have female hosts, _but_ I will personally hand-pick every single one of them!”

“No,” Kyouya sighed. “We’ll be holding an audition for the new hosts, and all of us will be on the panel. I don’t trust you to make the right decision while your emotions are fluctuating this much.”

“But _Mommy_ ,” Tamaki pouted, “you know I’m right!”

Kyouya frowned and pushed Tamaki back against his pillar. “Believe it or not, you’re usually wrong. Anyway, we should all get home and get some rest. I’ll send out an email to the students of Ouran and put up flyers for tomorrow. At least for tomorrow, club activities will be canceled in lieu of having host auditions. Does that sound good to everyone?” The club nodded in agreement. “Then it’s decided. Now let’s get home.

“We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”


	3. Hello, My Name Is...

The host auditions caused quite a buzz amongst the students in just a short twelve hours. Girls and boys all over the academy had been talking about it non-stop since the email about host auditions was sent. Several of the social activist clubs were already preparing articles for their club newsletters.

When the clock tower struck three, a crowd of students rushed to music room number three in hopes of getting there first. The loud chatter of anticipation was easily heard through the school’s thick walls. Too caught up in their own world and the anticipation of auditions, the students didn’t even notice the Hitachiin’s and Honey poking their heads through the large pink door.

“Wow,” Honey gasped, “there are a lot of people who want to be hosts.”

“Yeah. I had no idea this many people would actually want to be members of the host club,” Hikaru said.

“I didn’t even know we had this many openly gay students at our school,” Kaoru added. “I would have figured they’d stay in the closet.”

“How are we going to audition all of them?” Haruhi asked. “Do we have time to see everyone?” She turned towards Kyouya, already having doubts on the whole ordeal.

“We can start by separating them by gender.” Kyouya handed papers and clipboards to the twins and Honey. “Then we will give out the paperwork and get them to sign up. Unfortunately we won’t be able to have all of these people come in; however, I believe having a little luck will help seal the deal with the ones we choose.” ‘This is going to be a long day.’ Kyouya pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, preparing for the arguments and excitement that was sure to ensue once the doors were opened.

Honey, Mori and the twins made their way across the hall and deposited their clipboards at the back of the crowd, one labeled GENTLEMEN and the other LADIES. It wasn’t long before a swarm of students began to fight for the clipboards, each one eager to sign up. The four host members managed to slip away unnoticed, taking shelter behind the music room’s door. All of the other hosts cringed as they listened to Ouran students fight their way to the sign-up sheets. A moment later complete silence filled the hall and there was a knock on the door. The twins didn’t hesitate as they pushed Tamaki towards the sound. He opened it to reveal a hand pushing the clipboards into the room.

Kyouya smirked and took his place. “It’s time. Everyone, take a seat and get comfortable; this may take a while.” He sighed as Tamaki eagerly took the seat next to him and looked over the names. The rest of the hosts joined them as their King called out the first name.

“Miss Manami,” Tamaki said with a kind smile, “please come in!”

The first girl popped her head in before walking in. She smiled timidly and took a seat directly in front of them. Kyouya sat back, his own clipboard and pen in hand. “State your name and why you would be a great addition to our host club.”

“H-hello, I am M-Manami S-“

“Next.” Kyouya smiled and handed her the paperwork back. “Have a nice day Miss Manami.” Everyone simultaneously gulped and turned to Kyouya as Manami bowed and made her way out of the room. Kyouya ignored them as he called out the next name, “Miss Yumi!”

“Hello!! My name is Yumi and I love talking to new people and getting involved in new clu-“

“What are your qualifications?”

“Actually, this would be the first club I-“

“I apologize, in order to be chosen you must have at least joined two clubs prior to this. Have a good day, next!”

“Hello I’m Emi Y-“

“Where is your resume?”

“O-oh, I must have forgotten it. If you allow me, I can email it to you once we are finished w-“

“Miss Emi, you must always be prepared for an audition. We strongly believe that great hosts are not only punctual, polite and intellectual, we need hosts who are always prepared. Have a nice day. Next.”

“Hi! My name is Akemi. Oh gosh, I can’t believe that I get to be with all of you. I have bought as much of your prod-“

“You are ilovetamakisenpai936 right?”

“Yes, that’s me!”

“We cannot have regular clients as hosts. Next.”

“Good afternoon I’m Hanako Ma-“

“You recently quit all other club activities.”

“Y-yes, you see I-“

“Next.”

“Oh wow! Hello I’m Izumi and-“

“Next.”

“Tamaki-senpai I think I’d-“

“Next.”

“My name is Saki H-“

“Next.”

“Wait! Don’t come in yet. We need five minutes to regroup!” Tamaki called out before the next girl could step in. He turned to his side and gripped the Shadow King’s shoulder, “Kyouya what are you doing? You aren’t even giving the girls a chance to present themselves to us. A lady deserves better than what you are doing! We must show them respect and kindness so that she may blossom and show us her inner beauty!! Without that we may never find the right girl!”

“These girls aren’t ready to be a part of the host club. We have a standard and a reputation to live up to.” Kyouya glared at Tamaki, gripping the pen in his hand tighter. “I would hope you of all people would understand that Tamaki.”

“Tamaki’s right Kyou-chan,” Honey smiled and looked down at Usa-chan. “You shouldn’t judge those girls before you get to know them. Maybe you should go easier on them. We don’t want to scare off all of the other girls right? We need to work together to find the right hosts.”

“Besides,” Haruhi said, “if you keep scaring off these girls, they may not come back to the host club as customers, and then we’ll lose even more money. Is that something you want, Senpai?”

The Shadow King silently stared at Haruhi, his expression almost unreadable. Still, Haruhi stood her ground, challenging him to prove her wrong.

“ _Next_.” Kyouya smirked and waited for the door to open again.

A short girl walked in with confidence, smiling at all of the hosts before stopping and bowing. Her long brown hair almost touched the ground as her back bent to a ninety degree angle. “Hello, my name is Mika Miyamoto.” Her smile almost mirrored that of Honey’s as she stood up and presented a light pink resume to Tamaki.

“Take a seat Miss Miyamoto,” Kyouya looked up from his papers long enough to check out her features. ‘She looks the part, let’s see if she can fulfill the rest of the requirements.’ “Tell us more about yourself.”

“I am a second year at Ouran, recently transferred due to my family company’s sudden growth. We own a large chain of gourmet food companies and bakeries around Japan and Europe. I am working hard to become the next head of Miyamoto Confections Inc.”

“Your family is one of the main pastry providers for Ouran, correct?” Kyouya didn’t bother to look up again from his clipboard.

“That is exactly correct, and you are one of our bigger customers Mr. Ootori,” Mika smiled and sat back in her chair.

“Does that mean that you know how to make cakes?!” Honey’s eyes suddenly lit up with excitement. “Kyouya, she’s perfect! We can eat cakes together, and make cakes together and have all the cake we want.”

Mika giggled at Honey’s attention and turned her gaze towards Tamaki. “Well my family’s specialty is cakes, but mine is cookies.”

Honey couldn’t contain himself. “Cookies?! That’s even better!”

“What do you say Mr. President?” Mika’s smile grew even wider as she waited patiently for Tamaki’s response.

“Your resume,” Tamaki gasped, “it smells like lavender! It is the sign of a true lady! Kyouya, I approve of this young lady. She has all we need. She has manners, her resume has a lot of references, she is as beautiful as the setting sun upon the sea and almost as cute as Haruhi, what more could we ask for?!” Tamaki kept smelling the resume before shoving it at Kyouya’s face.

“What about her type?” Kyouya looked up briefly and moved the resume away from his face. The twins slowly stood up and circled around Mika, looking her up and down.

“Her smile reminds me of Honey-sempai,” Kaoru leaned in close to her face. “Her eyes are really big and she is really bubbly,” Hikaru finished, leaning in on her other side. “She is a shy princess type.” Both finished together, walking back to the others.

Kyouya looked over her resume, making some notes on it. “I think that is all we need today, thank you Miss Miyamoto. We will review our notes and contact you with our answer by the end of the day.” Mika smiled and shook their hands before making her way out. Tamaki jumped up and down in his seat, once again grasping Kyouya’s shoulder.

“Good job Mommy!! We have finally made progress with these auditions. I hope we find more girls like her. She was a sweet girl and so polite!” He jumped onto Kyouya’s lap hugging his best friend’s neck in excitement. “I’m so proud of you Kyouya! You let her finish her interview! Hooray! Hooray! Kyouya! Kyouya! Mon ami!” Kyouya pushed Tamaki’s face away from his and gave him a cold glare.

The door suddenly opened and a new girl walked in. She was tall and thin with a long neck and hair as black as coal down to her shoulders. She wore a blood red barrette in her hair, keeping her bangs in place. She flashed the club a cool smile as she gracefully moved towards the host club members.

“My name is Kimiko Honda.”


	4. NEXT!

The sound of Kimiko’s heels clicking reverberated through the room as she walked to sit down. Only after carefully observing each of the hosts did she decide to speak.

“Although this should already be obvious,” Kimiko said, “I want to join as a member of your host club.” She pulled a newly printed resume, in simple monochrome colors. “I believe my qualifications should be enough to allow me to join. You would all benefit with me as a host for male customers.”

Kyouya took her resume and sat up to look at her. “What qualifies you to make that decision?”

She smiled and slowly crossed her legs, gazing at him with an amused expression. “Look at my resume.”

“What about your attributes?”

“Resume.”

“Do you have any special skills you could bring to the group?”

“Yes.”

“What are they?”

“Everything is listed on my resume.”

Kyouya was slowly losing his temper. It disturbed him how prepared she seemed.

“She really reminds me of someone I know.” Haruhi and the twins looked back and forth between Kyouya and Kimiko.

“She’s just like him!” Kaoru whispered.

“The Shadow King finally met his match.” Hikaru finished.

Tamaki sat there gaping at her, thrown aback by all of her words.

“Even though you seem prepared and you have a lot of the preferred qualities, we already have the cool type.” Kyouya smirked and placed her resume on the coffee table between them. “I’m sorry, but you have no place in our club. Please kindly show yourself out.”

Kimiko slowly bent her head down and took a deep breath. There was a sudden silence as everyone turned to see her reaction. A tear rolled down her cheek and landed on her dress. Small sobs erupted from her lips. “You don’t understand, I really need to be a part of this club. I am under a great deal of pressure from my family. I am the next head of the company, and they would be disappointed if I didn’t surpass all of my father’s expectations. I just want him to be proud of me for once.” Tears began to fall from her eyes, her head bowing down further.

Tamaki stood up and offered her a handkerchief. “Don’t cry princess! You can be a part of the club. Kyouya himself said that you are more than qualified to be a host. We will help you impress your father and reunite your family. The bonds between a father and a daughter should not be strained if it can be stopped. You are hired!” He smiled and sat on the table in front of her. She wiped her tears away and turned her gaze back up to the hosts. A cheerful smile sat on her lips as she slowly sat back up again.

“Thank you. I will be here tomorrow right after school.” She stood and walked towards the door. “Oh, and Senpai? I’m an ice princess, not a cool type.” She fixed her hair and walked out the door. Silence filled the room as they waited for her to leave.

Tamaki sat staring at the door, a blank expression on his face. “W-What…what the hell just happened?”

“She totally pulled the wool over our eyes!” The twins chimed in.

“It’s like she became a totally different person!” Haruhi said. ‘She really is just like Kyouya-Senpai. We can’t handle _two_ of them!’

“She’s scary, Takashi!” Honey cried, hugging his taller companion. Mori just nodded, stone faced.

Kyouya smirked and looked over her resume again. “Kimiko Honda…hmm. I think you will fit perfectly in our host club. Men will be putty in your hands.”

“What?!” Tamaki wailed. “That’s a horrible thing to say!! We can’t give our customers the feeling of being manipulated!! Not everyone like being played in that way, Kyouya!!”

“Would you keep it down? You’re starting to give me a headache,” Kyouya sighed. Tamaki froze up and returned to his chair, pouting. “Anyway, I think we’re done with the women. I think we should get started on the men. Now this will be a bit harder since we need men who are willing to entertain other men. I have a feeling some of the boys here didn’t quite get the message.”

“Oh come on,” Tamaki jeered, “I’m sure they know exactly what they’re in for. There are plenty of young men out there willing to make the young men at our school happy. Now let’s start with...” He read out the clipboard. “Ah, yes. Mister Akiro. Please come in.”

The first boy stepped in and sat down confidently in the chair.

“Hello, I’m Akiro. Thank you for considering me as a host.”

“You’re very welcome, sir. So, tell me,” Tamaki started, “what exactly do you feel you have to offer the young men at Ouran Academy?”

Akiro’s face went white. “Wait…I thought I was gonna meet girls. I have to hit on dudes?”

Kyouya sighed and shooed him away. “Next.”  ‘This is going to be like finding a girl host all over again.’ The last thing he wanted was to repeat the experience.

“Hello, my name is Kenji, and I would love to meet the young women at Our-“

“Sorry, but this job is for a different set of skills. Next!”

“Good evening, I’m Sabuuro,” he mumbled, looking between all of the host timidly.

“Next.”

“Heeeeey, my name is-“

“Next!!” Every club member said in unison.

“Hi! My name is Daisuke. I figured that for this job you needed someone who was…playing for the other team. I would love to meet more of the men at Ouran, like this one.” He leaned in and took Haruhi’s hand, offering her a rose out of nowhere. 

“NEXT.” Tamaki shoved Daisuke out of the door before anything else could happen. “I think we’re done with trying to find a male host! Obviously, no one is right for the job!”

“Hang on a minute!” An auburn-haired student managed to push his way through a crack in the door. “Excuse me, my name is Itsuki Yamada. I would still like to audition to be a host.”

Tamaki frowned, but reluctantly opened the door for the lanky boy. “And what exactly makes you qualified to be a host for the young men of Ouran?” He asked with a warning glare.

Itsuki shrugged and walked towards the other hosts. “Well,” he said, “I know what makes a boy tick; I know what men like, from a man’s perspective.” He stopped in front of Kaoru and smirked, leaning down towards the blushing twin. “And I know how to make men like me, no matter what their preferences may be.” Kaoru blushed bright red as Itsuki came closer, and that just made Hikaru angry. “I know I have the vote of _someone_ here, right…uhm…” He laughed and got down to his knee. “I’m sorry, what was your name again?”

“K-Kaoru,” he said, leaning forward slightly. “Kaoru Hitachiin.”

“And _I’m_ his brother,” Hikaru growled, grabbing Itsuki by the shirt and pulling him to his feet, “and if you talk to him that way again, I’ll break your damn neck!”

“Hikaru,” Kaoru cried, “please, calm down! He wasn’t hurting anyone!”

“The hell he wasn’t! He was trying to impress you just to gain entrance to the club! Then he would try to get in your pants, is that it?!”

“NO!!” Itsuki shook his head, backing away from Hikaru. “No, it’s not like that at all! I was just showing you what I could do, that’s all!”

“And trying to flirt with my brother is the best way to do that?!” Hikaru snapped, shoving towards a vase display.

Haruhi gasped. “Itsuki-senpai, watch out!”

Itsuki managed to steady himself against the wooden display, knocking over a Renaissance vase identical to the one Haruhi broke on her first day. In what seemed like slow motion, the vase plummeted to the pink tile floor and…

…Itsuki grabbed it by the handle before it could even touch the ground. The club just stared in shock at him.

“I-I’m so sorry,” Itsuki said as he put the vase back. “I’ll just show myself out.”

“Are you kidding? That was amazing!” Tamaki wrapped his arm around the boy’s shoulder. “I’ve never seen anyone move with such agility, such grace! It was as if you were a graceful falcon, soaring through the air but still holding on to your prey! And yet, you’re so laid-back and strong like a gorilla.” Itsuki winced at the comparison. “I think you would be a perfect member of the host club as a new archetype; the laid-back boy.”

“Oh…so you’re letting me in the club?”

“Of course I am, silly,” Tamaki laughed. “We would have lost another ¥8 million if not for you! So starting tomorrow, you will report to the club after hours for training with our other newbies!”

“Tamaki,” Kyouya said, “we haven’t planned for a training session tomorrow.”

“Well then put it on the calendar! We have to make sure the new hosts are prepared for the demanding life of the Ouran High School Host Club!” Tamaki smiled and led Itsuki to the door. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Itsuki.”

“Thank you so much! But, please,” he insisted, “call me Suki.”

Tamaki smiled and nodded. “Alright then. We’ll see you tomorrow!” He shut the door and turned back to the club. “Looks like our troubles are on their way to being over, men! As soon as we get our new hosts trained, the club will be saved!”

“I suppose we do have some good options for the customers,” Kyouya agreed. “This should go over well.”

“Are you kidding?!” Hikaru snapped. “That guy Itsuki was totally shady! I don’t want him anywhere near our club, much less our customers! Who knows what his real motives are?!”

“You’re getting way to protective of Kaoru, Hikaru,” Haruhi said. “This is what’s best for the sake of the club, and you do care about the club’s well-being right?” Hikaru sighed and silently nodded. “Then you need to get your act together and suck it up.”

“Yay!” Honey cheered. “New hosts! I like them, especially that Mika girl. She’s pretty _and_ she knows how to make sweets!” Mori nodded in approval.

“Perfect!” Tamaki exclaimed. “And tomorrow, we’ll train the hosts so they can get better acquainted with their positions in the club. We will make them proper gentlemen…and gentlewomen.”

Kyouya nodded and turned to look out at the sunset. “We’ll discuss details of the training later tonight, Tamaki,” he said as he adjusted his glasses. “But I think all of us need to get home and rest. We’ve had a long day, and we have an even longer day ahead of us.”

“Agreed,” the Hitachiins said in unison.

Honey yawned and leaned against Mori as he was placed on top of the silent man’s shoulders. Haruhi, Tamaki, and Kyouya followed the third years out of the door. The twins stayed back and waited for the others to leave. Once they were out of earshot, Kaoru spoke.

“You can’t keep worrying about me, Hikaru,” he said. “I can take care of myself.”

“Let’s just get to the car,” Hikaru sighed, grabbing his bag before heading out of the music room.

Kaoru knew that this would just come up again—definitely with a vengeance—but he was ready to just leave that conversation for another day; perhaps a day when his brother wasn’t so riled up. After a moment, he grabbed his own bag and followed Hikaru.

* * *

Kyouya sighed as his car moved past the gates to his estate. As he got out of the car, he was still thinking about the new schedules for the new hosts and how he would get ready for the funding they were about to gain. He didn’t realize it before, but he had severely underestimated Renge and her decision-making abilities. The confidentiality of the club would prevent any children of bigoted families from finding out their children were seeing hosts of the same sex, and his father’s disinterest in anything to do with the club would prevent word from spreading about the Ootori son condoning this type of ‘scandalous’ behavior; everything was working out perfectly.

As he passed by his father’s personal office on the way to his room, Kyouya could hear Yoshio talking on the phone.

“He doesn’t know yet, but I figured he would soon find out. This marriage will be for the best for both of our companies. We will be able to expand to a wider variety of clients and increase our profits. I am sure you have made your daughter aware of the situation...Good. I will be making the announcement soon.”

Kyouya kept walking, making his way upstairs. ‘So Akito will be getting married soon…It’s about time, but I don’t think he’ll be a good husband, no matter whom he marries.’


	5. Training: Three Challenges

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many apologies for the lack of content. Our school schedule has been getting in the way of the updating of this story. Thankfully, there is much more of 'The Price of Being a Host' to come in the near future. Enjoy!

“Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the Ouran High School Host Club training day!” Tamaki proudly gestured to the three teens standing in front of him. “Mika, Kimiko, and Itsuki-“

“It’s just Suki,” the ginger corrected.

“You three have been selected as members of the elite Ouran Host Club,” Tamaki continued, “an honor which we only grant to those who exhibit grandeur and excellence with other people.”

Haruhi scoffed, “Please. You just asked your friends to join the club with you.”

“Anyway,” Tamaki continued, “since school is out for the weekend, we have all of today to make sure you’re trained before going in on Monday. You will be trained to perfection in manners, proper flirting, and perfecting your archetype! Once we do that, you will go home and practice what you’ve learned. And from now on, you will only refer to me as King, understood?”

“Yes, King Tamaki,” Mika and Suki answered with enthusiasm.

“Sure,” Kimiko sighed. “Just one question; why the hell are we doing this outside instead of in the club room?” She and the other hosts looked around the large and beautiful courtyard of the Hitachiin manor, well-worth the view despite the overcast weather.

“And did it have to be at our house?” The twins asked.

“Consider it your punishment for attacking Itsuki yesterday,” Kyouya said with a smile. “Besides, you’re still recovering from the fight you two had, and Haruhi’s little hovel is much too small for this sort of practice.”

“I can hear you, you know,” Haruhi sighed.

“It’s okay, Haru-chan,” Honey said. “It’s not your fault that you live in poverty.”

“But I don’t live in poverty…”

Tamaki stepped forward towards the three new hosts and looked them over. “Right. Let’s see what you can do! Princess Mika!”

Mika tensed up like a soldier. “Yes, King Tamaki!”

“Hikaru and Kaoru told you that you were the shy princess type yesterday, correct?”

“Yes, King Tamaki!”

“Then I want you to project that type onto one of the members of the host club. They will let you know when you have impressed them to your fullest potential. Kyouya will judge you on how well you can appeal to different groups of people.”

“Yes, King Tamaki!”

“Good. Princess Kimiko!”

“Please don’t call me that, Senpai,” Kimiko sighed, brushing her hair back behind her ear.

Tamaki sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Please, for the sake of the program, just call me King.” He pulled a rose out of his jeans pocket and held it out to her. “Don’t make me have to beg.”

“God, you’re needy,” she groaned. “Fine, _King_ , what do you need me to do?”

“That’s better,” Tamaki said with a grin. “For you, ice princess isn’t a proper archetype because many men aren’t attracted to a cold woman. Since you’ve shown us your acting skills, I want you to find one type that will fit you the most and be appealing to your customers!”

Kimiko shrugged. “Alright, fine. Whatever you say.”

“Good. Now, as for you, Itsuki.”

“Suki,” he corrected.

“You gave us a taste of your talent for the male appeal yesterday, but I don’t think it will be enough just to be able to impress Kaoru,” Tamaki sad, circling the boy. “I want you to try to make every boy in the club blush at your words alone; except for Haruhi and Kaoru. That will prove to me that you can conquer any challenge you meet. Understood?”

“Yes King Tamaki,” Suki answered. “Wait, why can’t I flirt with Haruhi?”

“Because Haruhi is a precious little flower that is easily swayed by the male form, and flirting with him would be too easy! Besides, I’m not about to let you corrupt my Haruhi just for the sake of some club exercise!!”

“But you’re perfectly fine with everyone else being ‘corrupted’?” Haruhi asked, rolling her eyes. “You are such a hypocrite.”

Tamaki proceeded to pout in the corner by a rose bush, a dark cloud hovering over him.

“Uh, is he gonna be okay?” Mika asked.

“Yeah, he’ll be okay.” Haruhi said with a smile. “Stuff like this happens on a daily basis. He’ll just snap out of it eventually and go back to his annoying and chipper self.”

“Oh.” Mika nodded and smiled before looking back at Tamaki. “I see.”

“We should probably get started,” Kyouya said, suddenly taking charge. “Kimiko, I want you to go try out different archetypes with Honey-senpai. Itsuki and Mika, stay here and work on your impressions with the guests. We will start work immediately.”

“Yes, sir,” all three said in unison.

* * *

 

“M-My you look v-very h-handsome today,” Mika stuttered, inching closer to Hikaru on the bench. “I-I like your…y-your…uhm…”

“Stop,” Kyouya ordered. “Miss Miyamoto, when we gave you the archetype of the shy princess, that did not mean that you would be unable to speak.”

Mika looked down at her lap. “I’m trying!” She cried. “But it’s not that easy! When I look at him, it’s like he’s staring into the depths of my soul and it makes me very uncomfortable!”

“As a host, you must be skilled in the art of flirting,” Kyouya said, crossing his arms over his chest. “This is a very simple exercise for a necessary skill. Now try it again.”

Mika sighed and turned back to Hikaru, who was watching her with a kind smile. “…uh…I like your…” Her eyes went down to the twin’s sandals, “shoes.”

“No!” Kyouya was getting more annoyed by the second. “Focus on the person, not what’s attached to them. Try it again.”

“I’m sorry!” Mika turned back to Kyouya. “I’ve never had a boyfriend before, much less flirted with anyone. This is the one thing I stink at!”

“I think you just need to relax,” Hikaru said. He leaned closer to Mika and gently grabbed her chin between his thumb and index finger. “Just look into my eyes, kitten. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“I-I know you’re not going to hurt me!” Mika said, hiding her now dark-red face in her hands. “And please don’t call me ‘kitten’.”

From behind the bushes, Kaoru gently placed his hand on Mika’s shoulder and leaned towards her ear. “Perhaps you just need to be cuddled a bit more,” he whispered. “The girls that come to us love to be gently caressed, and Mika is the type that wants to be pet like a puppy.”

Mika shivered and pushed herself off of the bench. “I don’t want to be treated like a pet!” She said once she was a considerable distance away from the twins.

The twins looked at each other, searching each other’s heads for ideas. “Well, she’s obviously intimidated very easily,” Kaoru said, turning back to their shaking princess.

“Maybe we’ll give her the gentler male clientele,” Hikaru suggested.

From inside the house, Mori came out with a glass of iced tea, spotting Mika curled up next to a bush. “Mika,” he said, holding a hand out to her, “your dress is getting dirty.”

Hesitantly, Mika took his hand and stood up, staring into his eyes. “Mori-senpai…”

The twins and Kyouya looked on with a hopeful glint in their eyes. “No sign of anxiety yet,” the redheads said.

After a moment of silence, Mika pulled her hand away and retreated three feet away from Mori. “T-Thank you,” she mumbled. In response, Mori just nodded and walked away.

“And once again, she fails to perform,” Kyouya said. This girl really did seem hopeless. He wondered how she managed to be so confident in the interview.

Hikaru shrugged. “Maybe we just haven’t found the guys she’s compatible with,” he said.

“We could just test her with someone else,” Kaoru suggested.

“We’ve already tried with everyone else,” Kyouya sighed in annoyance, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You just don’t know how to act around people. Perhaps I overestimated your abilities to be a host, Miss Miyamoto.”

“N-No, please!” Mika begged, attempting to perk up. “I can do it. I just need a bit more practice!”

Kyouya sighed and looked over at Haruhi sitting by herself in a lawn chair. He smiled to himself. “Well, there is one more thing we could try.” He promptly snapped his fingers, with a sly look to Mika. “Haruhi,” he said, “would you come over here for a moment? I want to try something.”

Albeit hesitantly, Haruhi walked towards Kyouya. “What is it, Senpai?” she asked.

“Sit down,” Kyouya ordered, which Haruhi did on command. “Now, Miss Miyamoto, I want you to flirt with Haruhi.”

“What?!” The two girls exclaimed in unison.

“B-But I can’t flirt with Haruhi!” Mika cried. “I could barely look Hikaru in the eyes and even Mori- senpai was too intimidating!”

Haruhi frowned and placed her hand over Mika’s. “I think you may be over-thinking this too much, Mika-senpai,” she said.

A soft blush covered Mika’s cheeks, but she didn’t seem ready to run and hide.

“You’re focusing too much on trying to be romantic,” Haruhi said, smiling for her. “Just relax and compliment them the way you would anyone else. It’s what usually works for me.”

Mika nodded, “Okay.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before turning back to Haruhi, quickly relaxing. “I…I really like your eyes,” she said.

The comment caught Haruhi off-guard. “Really? Well, thank you, but they’re just brown. It’s a very common color.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s not beautiful.” Mika gently squeezed the other girl’s hand. “They’re light and smooth. It reminds me of caramel or chocolate…but I’m sure you get that a lot.”

Haruhi shook her head. “No, I don’t.”

Mika giggled and grinned at Haruhi. “Well I guess it’s not bad to start a trend,” she said.

“Wonderful,” Kyouya said, breaking the gaze between the two girls. “Well done, Miss Miyamoto. I think we’ve finally found your specialty. We’re going to assign you the new female customers starting Monday morning.”

Mika gasped in surprise. “Yay! Thank you, thank you!” She cheered. A part of her wondered why Kyouya came to that conclusion after having her flirt with Haruhi, but she was too happy that she impressed the Shadow King to care.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just the first part of the new hosts' training day. More to come in the next chapter!


	6. The Unspoken Rule

“It’s really obvious when you get down to it,” Kimiko said, sipping her iced tea in the garden. “It’s an inferiority complex. He just doesn’t want me to be better than him, especially if I’m a girl. That would make him look weak in the eyes of his superiors; at least, that’s what he believes.”

“But it doesn’t make sense,” Honey said, taking a bite of a glazed fruit tart. “If you’re the chosen heir, why would he put you down like that?”

Kimiko put her glass down with a sad sigh. “So I’ll quit and my brother can be the next in line,” she said. “That’s why I have to prove him wrong. The company should go to the eldest child. I’ve worked too hard to let it fall through the cracks.”

“You sound really dedicated!” Honey said. “I don’t know if I could be that brave, Kimi-chan.”

She simply shrugged and glanced over towards the rest of the group. “Well, it’s what any other heir would do. I wouldn’t necessarily call that bravery.”

“Wouldn’t call what bravery?” The Hitachiin’s said, walking up to their table.

“I thought you were supposed to be working on your archetype,” Hikaru said.

“Not fooling around with Honey-senpai,” Kaoru finished.

“I _am_ working on my archetype,” Kimiko said, rolling her eyes. “Isn’t most of what you do just talking to people and making them interested in what you have to offer?”

“Kimi-chan’s been telling some really neat stories, too!” Honey said. “Like one time when she re-worked her father’s presentation spreadsheets when she was nine-“

“So, what are you guys doing here?” Kimiko asked as Honey continued talking.

The twins gestured back to Kyouya. “Kyouya-senpai wanted us to check up on your progress,” they said. “We’ve already gotten Mika-senpai settled with her archetype.”

“But from the looks of it,” Hikaru said, “men are just going to be offset by you at this point.”

Kimiko tilted her glasses down to glare at him. “What exactly is that supposed to mean?”

“I’m just saying,” he shrugged, “boys aren’t going to be into you if all you have to offer is that you’re domineering and what to take control of everything. They’re just going to see you as a frigid bitch.”

“Hika-chan, that’s not a very nice thing to say,” Honey shook his head in disappointment.

“I don’t care,” Hikaru said, “it’s the truth.”

“No it’s not!” Kaoru said, tugging on his brother’s sleeve. “Just because you might not like her doesn’t mean you can bully her like that.”

“Well, if she says she has been working on her archetype, why doesn’t she tell us about what she has learned so far?” Hikaru had a smug look on his face. “If she looks like she has made progress, then we can report to Kyouya-senpai and stop bothering you.”

Kimiko chuckled softly into her hand. “I am the modern woman type, of course! Some men actually like it when women have a dominating side and that will definitely bring in more guests. I have ambition and a sense of self-worth that radiates confidence. It really wasn’t that hard to figure out.”

Kaoru nodded. “That could be interesting to work with.”

“No, it’s horrible,” Hikaru said. “What kind of archetype is that? No guy is going to go for a woman who is only interested in power.”

Kimiko smirked at the older Hitachiin. “Well, believe it or not, some boys think power is sexy.” She looked him up and down. “Aren’t you forgetting something, Hikaru?” She asked before taking another sip of her tea.

Hikaru frowned and looked for any possible stains or skewed articles of clothing. “No,” he said. “ _You’re_ just looking for a flaw on me.”

“You didn’t put on sunscreen,” Kimiko said.

“I don’t need to,” he replied. “It’s cloudy.”

“You can get worse sunburn when it’s overcast,” she said. “The clouds hold droplets of water that reflect the sun’s light, making it more intense-“

“Do you have to be such a show-off? Case-in-point,” Hikaru said, “you’re a show-off, and guys don’t like girls who just want to take control.”

“I’m just trying to help,” Kimiko said.

“Well I don’t need your damn advice!” Hikaru stormed off, Kaoru following after giving Kimiko an apologetic look.

Kimiko sighed and looked back at Honey. “Is he always that much of an ass?”

“Only when he can’t express his feelings,” Honey said, finishing up his tart. “You’ll get used to it.”

“He’s kind of like a little kid in that way, huh?” Itsuki asked, leaning against a nearby shrub. Kimiko and Honey turned in surprise to look at the second-year.

“How long have you been standing there?” Kimiko asked.

“Like a five-year-old pulling his crush’s hair on the playground,” Itsuki continued, completely ignoring Kimiko’s question as he walked towards their table. “It’s sad that he’s so afraid of feelings he can’t understand.”

Honey nodded in agreement and looked up at Itsuki. “It is sad,” he said, suddenly serious. “Hika-chan and Kao-chan never spent a moment apart when they were little, and they didn’t even want others to enter their world. I was worried they’d never make friends.”

Itsuki smiled and knelt next to Honey’s chair. “Well, I bet it helps when they have friends like you, Honey-senpai,” he said. “Your wisdom is often masked by your child-like attitude, but I wasn’t fooled. You have the maturity and discipline of a true Haninozuka, but a sweetness that’s all your own.”

Honey’s cheeks turned bright pink the more Itsuki flattered him. “You really mean that, Suki-chan?” he asked.

“Of course I do! After all, King Tamaki did say to only compliment based on truth.” Itsuki beamed, pleased that Honey remembered his preferred name.

Kimiko rolled her eyes and walked away. ‘So this was all just for the stupid club exercise,’ she thought. ‘That two-faced bastard.’

“Miss Honda,” Kyouya said, beckoning the girl over, “have you managed to find a working archetype?”

“Yes, Kyouya-senpai,” Kimiko said as she walked toward the Shadow King. “I’ve settled on the archetype of the modern woman. I think it will be a nice change from all the damsels in distress usually seen around the host club.”

Kyouya nodded, jotting it down in his notepad. “I saw Mister Yamada was with Honey-senpai,” he said. “How is he doing with the flirting?”

“Almost too well.” Kimiko rolled her eyes and looked back at Itsuki and Honey. “He has Honey-senpai eating right out of the palm of his hand.”

“Well, Honey-senpai isn’t exactly hard to win over,” Kyouya said. “His weakness is that he enjoys being complimented, and he melts when you appeal to the right sensibilities. If Mister Yamada wants to really show his skill as a host, he’s going to have to woo someone not as easily swayed.”

‘Someone like you?’ Kimiko thought. She turned back to watch Honey and Itsuki, noticing that Mori had joined the pair. Even from far away, she could see a faint blush on the tall boy’s cheeks as he patted Itsuki’s head. “Well,” she said with a smirk, “I don’t think it’ll be too hard for him to meet your expectations.” She turned with a smile and disappeared inside the Hitachiin’s house.

Curious, Kyouya turned to watch the scene as well. He smiled and jotted down more notes. “Perhaps you’re right.”

* * *

 

 “There’s no way in hell,” Hikaru said stubbornly. “You can’t make me.”

Tamaki growled, his patience wearing thin. “Look, it’s for the sake of the club. All Itsuki-“

“Suki,” the boy in question corrected from his spot beside Tamaki.

“Right,” Tamaki said. “All Suki has to do is make you blush. That’s it! Then you don’t have to look at him for the rest of the day!”

Hikaru rolled his eyes. “Having that pervert breathe near me is enough to make me sick.” Itsuki felt his self-esteem drop several notches.

“Will you stop being so stubborn, Hikaru?!” Tamaki snapped. “As your King, I demand that you let Itsuki flirt with you, or else!”

“Or else what?” Hikaru asked. “You don’t actually have the power to do anything. All you can do is make empty threats without actually following through. It’s really pathetic.”

And, once again, Tamaki retreated to sulk by a rose bush.

Hikaru smirked and laid back in his chair. “He’s such an idiot,” he said.

Itsuki looked between their host King and Hikaru, frowning. ‘This kid really is emotionally stunted,’ he thought. “Look,” he sighed, “I understand why you’re angry at me, but you don’t have to-“

“You understand?” Hikaru challenged him. “You understand what it’s like having your brother hit on by some random jock you don’t even know?”

“No, I mean I un-…wait, how did you know I was a jock?” Itsuki asked.

“I read Kyouya-senpai’s file on you,” Hikaru sneered. “You’re on Ouran’s swim team and you have a lot of girls and guys that fawn over you because of it. I also know that you’re an only child, so there is no way in hell you could understand how it feels to have your brother hit on by some womanizer.”

Itsuki took a moment and just shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. I mean I understand why you’re so protective of Kaoru.” That took Hikaru aback. “You’re close to him, and you want to keep him safe, especially from someone like me,” the taller boy joked. “Yeah, I did grow up an only child, and seeing the way you care about Kaoru makes me envious. I wish I had a brother who cared about me as much as you care for your brother. He doesn’t realize how lucky he is to have you.”

Hikaru felt his face heat up slightly. He tried to say something in response, but he had gone completely dumb.

Tamaki looked up from his spot in shock. “Incredible,” he gasped.

From out of the house, Kaoru and Kyouya walked into the scene in the garden. “Hikaru,” the younger twin said, “are you okay?”

After a long moment, Hikaru backed away and silently retreated back inside their house.

Kyouya flashed a grin at Itsuki and made a quick note. “Well done, Mister Yamada,” he said. “Only two more to go.”

Tamaki instantly perked up and was at Kyouya’s side. “That’s right, my lax prince,” he said. “All you have to do now is impress myself and Kyouya. Are you up to the challenge?”

Nervously, Itsuki glanced between the two Kings, thinking for a split second that he was a bit in over his head. But his confidence quickly took over again and he nodded with a grin. “Let’s do this.”

Tamaki stepped forward in front of the tall boy. “Now, Suki, I am not someone who is easily impressed! To win my heart over you must be incredibly skilled the art of seduction!” He paced around Itsuki, radiating grandeur and confidence. “So what do you think? Are you going to be able to do that?”

A sly smirk decorated Itsuki’s mouth as dropped to his knees and took Tamaki’s hand in his own. “Yes my King. You are entirely correct.” He turned to look at Tamaki, deep care and devotion shinning in his eyes. “I will do my best for you. This club became everything to me ever since I joined. I will live by the rules even now as hard as it may be, because you, my precious creature, have perfectly designed this club with your guests in mind. Thank you King Tamaki, for giving me this opportunity.”

Tamaki stood there in complete silence, his cheeks bright red and mouth hanging open in shock. Just as well, Kyouya watched them in shock for a completely different reason. His grip on his pen tightened the brighter Tamaki blushed and the longer Itsuki held the Host King’s hand— _his_ Host King’s hand.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Kyouya said, practically dragging Tamaki away. “You’ve done well so far, Mister Yamada. Now,” he grinned and knelt next to Itsuki, “all you have to do is impress me.”

A chill ran up Itsuki’s spine. How the hell was he supposed to make Kyouya Ootori—one of the most intelligent and emotionally manipulative people in the world—blush? He would have to use every ability he had to even get some sort of response out of the Shadow King. “Can we maybe do this in private?” He asked.

Kyouya nodded and stood up, leading Itsuki over to a garden table. “Alright,” he started as they sat down across from each other, “so, impress me.”

Itsuki nodded, feeding Kyouya compliments and random facts as he formulated a strategy. ‘I can’t compliment his intelligence, since he knows how smart he is,’ he thought. ‘He’s too self-assured for me to compliment his looks. There’s no way I can make a lewd comment without getting kicked out of the club, so that’s out.’ He panicked as Kyouya began jotting down more notes, smirking the more he fell flat. ‘Jeez, what makes this guy tick?!...maybe I could…’

Without breaking focus, Itsuki removed his shirt and sat it down on his lap, rendering Kyouya completely silent. “Sorry, it was getting really hot,” he purred. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“Uhm...n-no, not at all,” Kyouya said, attempting to remain composed. “So…y-you were…you were saying about…about the…something about the…”

“About the what, Kyouya?” Itsuki asked innocently, his expression remaining the same.

A high-pitched gasp left Kyouya’s mouth when he attempted to speak again, his face tinted pink.

Itsuki nodded. “Right, that’s good enough for me,” he said, standing up and grabbing his shirt.

“Hey, that’s cheating!” Tamaki protested, sprinting over to the table. “The instruction was to only use your words! You can’t make him blush using your body!!”

“But if you were watching closely, he didn’t blush until I started talking to him.” Itsuki shrugged and put his shirt back on. “So, technically, I did follow your instructions.”

Tamaki stammered as he reached for something to stay in protest. “That still shouldn’t be the way you win over your customers!”

“But he still completed the exercise,” Kyouya said, clearing his throat and jotting down a few notes. “Mister Yamada, please find Miss Miyamoto and Miss Honda and bring them back to the courtyard. I think our training is done for today.”

Itsuki walked off with a smile, chuckling as Tamaki went back to ranting as he walked away. As he turned the corner into the house, he saw Kimiko standing at the edge of the door. “How long have you been standing there?” He asked.

“About five minutes,” she said, fixing her hair. “Mika-senpai’s in the living room with Honey-senpai.”

Itsuki gave a confused nod and left, leaving Kimiko to watch the host club presidents very closely—noticing a spark neither boy seemed to pick up.

* * *

 

 “Congratulations, ladies and gentleman,” Tamaki proudly declared to the newbies. “You three are now proud, fully trained members of the Ouran High School Host Club!” The other hosts golf clapped as the twins unenthusiastically threw confetti up in the air. “Allow me to formally welcome you to our ranks, Mika Miyamoto, Kimiko Honda, and Itsuki Yamada.”

Suki didn’t bother correcting him this time.

Kyouya stepped forward next to their president. “You have all done excellent work today,” he said. “Now you will go home and practice what you have learned for Monday. But for the moment, we have prepared something for you as a congratulations. Tamaki, will you and Honey-senpai please retrieve their reward?”

“Of course,” Tamaki said. “Be right back!” The blond left with Honey following closely behind. Once they were out of earshot, Kyouya turned back towards the three rookies.

“We do have something prepared for you,” he said, “but I needed to make sure Tamaki doesn’t hear what I’m about to tell you.”

All the new hosts tensed slightly. “What would that be?” Mika asked nervously.

“It’s something Tamaki doesn’t necessarily agree with, but I figured it would be good for you to be aware of,” Kyouya said. “I want to tell you the unspoken rule of the Ouran Host Club.”

“Oh god, not this again,” the twins groaned.

“Wait, what unspoken rule?” Haruhi asked. “Why haven’t I heard about this?”

“Kyouya-senpai knew he wouldn’t have to worry about this with you,” Hikaru said. “But, with them…”

“The possibility of them breaking this rule is more likely,” Kaoru whispered.

Itsuki shrugged. “Okay,” he said. “So, what’s the rule?”

Kyouya closed his book and stood firmly in front of the new hosts. “As members of the elite Ouran Host Club, we have an obligation to keep those who come through our doors happy and wanted. In order to do this, we dote on them and give them the attention they desire; however, that is as far as it goes. We are not a service that provides love. We give them affection, but never cross the border into romance, preventing them from getting their hearts broken. As a result, we are not to harbor feelings our guests or other hosts, as it would distract from making every person feel special. That is the unspoken rule: we do not love, therefore we do not expect love in return.”

The three rookies stared at the Shadow King with a mix of confusion and shock.

“That seems like a very grim outlook on your work,” Kimiko said.

Kyouya shrugged and adjusted his glasses. “That’s just the price of being a host,” he said, “and I expect all of you to follow this rule. Is that understood?”

After a moment of hesitation, Kimiko and Itsuki nodded and said, “Yes, sir.”

Kyouya turned his attention to Mika, who was staring down at her shoes. “Miss Miyamoto, is that understood?”

Mika looked back up at the boy and shrugged. “I just don’t think that’s a fair rule to live by,” she said. “We’re humans, and isn’t it in human nature to want to be loved?”

“That isn’t a luxury we have, Miss Miyamoto,” Kyouya said, standing in front of her now. “As long as you’re a part of this club, you must obey this rule. Now, I’ll ask you again, is that understood?”

Mika nodded shakily and looked down again. “Yes, sir,” she mumbled.

“Good,” Kyouya said. “And remember, this is our little secret from Tamaki.”

As if on cue, Tamaki, Honey, and several of the Hitachiin’s servants came out with trays of magnificent pastries. Despite the grim conversation that had taken place, a sudden weight was lifted off everyone’s shoulders as happiness once again filled the garden. The teens ate, talked, and the new club members started to realize the responsibility and the position they know had with this group of crazy boys and—to Kimiko’s knowledge—one rational girl:

They were now members of the Ouran High School Host Club.


	7. The First to Step Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many apologies for the inactivity over the last few months. We've been extremely busy with school, but we will try to stay on top of updates as best we can. Thanks for sticking with us, and please enjoy!

At long last, Monday finally came around. The news of the brand new hosts had gone viral over the weekend, and students all over the academy were impatiently waiting for the school day to just be over.

“What do you think the girl hosts are going to be like?”

“I bet they’re gorgeous!”

“But doesn’t that mean they’ll be prettier than the girls that come to the club?”

“Oh, you’re right.”

“I don’t think so. Miyamoto’s cute, but that Kimiko girl is kind of plain.”

“Hey, that’s not a nice thing to say!”

“Well, it’s true!”

“Do you think it’s a good idea for the guys to go? I mean, it’s a host club with mostly girls. What if our parents find out?”

“That’s not going to happen.”

“Oh really? How do you know?”

“They have that confidentiality thing. Nobody outside the club knows about what happens with the hosts. It’s totally safe, unless you want to tell your parents yourself.”

“Really…well, I have always thought Mori-senpai was really cute-“

“Dude, really?!”

“What? I like the strong silent type!”

“That’s weird, man. Besides, everyone knows Tamaki’s the best.”

“You’re only saying that ‘cause he’s the club president!”

“Am not!”

“Are to!”

The chatter throughout the school continued that way the entire day—arguing over who would be the best, worrying about their reputation, questioning the quality of the new hosts. No one knew what would happen that afternoon.

Still, they all knew the only way they would find out was to go to the empty music room after school and discover it for themselves.

* * *

“I can’t find my bows!” Mika cried, tearing apart her backpack. “Has anyone seen my pink bows?!”

Kimiko calmly walked up to her senior and hander her the pink clip-on bows. “They fell out in the hall when you were rushing here,” she said.

Mika sighed in relief and hugged the taller girl. “Thank you so much, Kimi-chan!” She said.

“It’s no problem,” Kimiko said, sheepishly returning the hug. “And please don’t call me Kimi-chan. If you start, everyone will be doing it.”

“Honey-senpai already calls you that, though.” Mika pulled a compact mirror out of her backpack and fixed her hair, pinning in the bows. “Besides, it’s cute.”

 “It sounds like a name for a four-year-old,” Kimiko said with a small smile.

Mika giggled as she put her mirror away. “How do I look?”

Kimiko looked her over, nodding. “You look nice.”

“Oh, there you girls are!” Tamaki said, waltzing over to them from his place on the sofa. “We were starting to get worried. Have either of you seen Itsuki or Haruhi yet?”

“Haruhi’s on his way down here,” Kimiko said. She figured over the last few days that the host club wanted to keep Haruhi’s true gender a secret, so she decided it would be better to call her by the male pronouns until told otherwise. “Not sure about Suki-senpai, though.”

“Suki-senpai was talking to the swim coach when we last saw him,” the Hitachiins said as they walked through the doors, the elder of which was dark red and extremely uncomfortable in his school uniform. Kimiko couldn’t help but smirk.

“Oh my god, Hikaru,” Tamaki gasped, “what happened? How did you get so sunburned?”

“I don’t know, Boss,” Hikaru growled, glaring at Kimiko. “Why don’t you ask _her_ how I got so sunburned?” All eyes turned to the host in question.

“He didn’t put on sunscreen during our training day, even after I told him how badly he would get burned.” Kimiko walked over to Hikaru and giggled. “But don’t you look wonderful? I don’t even think Suki-senpai made you turn this red.”

“Shut your mouth, you bitch!” Hikaru snapped.

“Hikaru, stop it,” Kaoru said, smacking his brother’s shoulder.

“Ow! What the hell was that for?” Hikaru shouted.

“You were being an ass, so you deserved that.”

“He does have a point,” Kimiko added.

“Stay out of this, Honda!”

“Are you gonna make me, Hitachiin?”

“I just might!”

A loud thud quickly broke up the fight. Everyone turned to see Mori standing with Honey and Kyouya. On the table next to them was a stack of text books—the source of the noise, the hosts figured.

“That’s enough,” Honey said, stepping forward. “We’re supposed to be learning how to get along, and you’re not helping, Hika-chan. You’ve been really hostile over the last few days, and everyone’s getting tired of it. You have to stop, or you’ll put the club in jeopardy. Okay?”

The new hosts were slightly scared, never seeing this serious side of Honey before. It made sense now why the martial arts clubs respected him so much.

Hikaru sighed and gently rubbed his shoulder. “Yes, Honey-senpai,” he said.

“Good,” Honey said. “And Kimi-chan, you can’t be an instigator, okay? It’s not a good idea for you to start fights.”

“Yes, Honey-senpai,” Kimiko said.

“Okay, good!” Honey was once again back to his cheery self. He rejoined Mori, and the group went to gather by a large table.

“Yeah, Kimi-chan, behave yourself,” Hikaru teased.

Kimiko smirked evilly and smacked him hard on the small of his back. “Oops,” she said before joining the others.

Hikaru rounded up to chase after her, but Kaoru stopped him with a firm grip on his wrist.

“Knock it off,” he whispered. “Please?”

Reluctantly, Hikaru tore his arm away and calmly walked with Kaoru toward the table, taking the seat as far away from Kimiko as possible.

“Sorry I’m late!” Haruhi said as she rushed through the door. “I had to get some notes back from a classmate. I got here as fast as I could.”

Tamaki glided over to her with a grin. “That’s quite alright, Haruhi,” he said, petting her hair. “We haven’t even started the meeting yet! You’re not late at-OW!!”

“Don’t do that,” Haruhi said, pinching her senpai’s hand harder before tossing it off her head. “I’m just glad I made it here on time.”

“We’re still waiting for Mister Yamada to arrive,” Kyouya said.

“So you have nothing to worry about, Haruhi!” Mika beamed. “You’re perfect…for being on time, I mean! Just for that. N-Not to say you’re not good at other stuff, too. I mean, punctuality is always a good thing, but you’re just…good at things!”

“Insert foot,” Hikaru whispered.

“Directly in mouth,” Kaoru finished, snickering to his brother.

Kimiko rolled her eyes. ‘Assholes,’ she thought.

“WAIT, I’M HERE!” Everyone turned in time to see a soaking wet Itsuki run into the room, papers flying freely out of his bag. His hair was sticking out in odd places and his uniform was barely on.

“What happened to you?” The twins asked, eyeing Itsuki as the boy pulled up another chair.

“I-I had swim practice a-and coach wanted t-to have a-a word with me.” Itsuki took deep breaths as he finally settled into his seat.

“Is this something we should be concerned about?” Kyouya tapped on his clipboard impatiently.

“No.” Itsuki answered back just as quickly. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” He smiled sweetly and leaned on the table. “So…We’re here for the first day, boss! What are we doing?”

Haruhi stared at him in disbelief for a brief moment. ‘How can he switch back into this persona so quickly?!’

“Why Itsuki,” Tamaki rose from his seat, “you know that today we shall be introducing our three lovely new hosts! This is a very big day for all of us! Of course, there won’t be any scheduled appointments for you at first; but don’t fret! I’m sure that soon enough you’ll each gather your own crowd of ladies and gentlemen. Everyone else should remember that today we might just have our very first male guests, and while Itsuki is the main man-to-man entertainer, we mustn’t keep our minds closed! You are all bound to be requested by a male guest at the very least by the end of the week.” Tamaki sprang up, holding a rose as if he were offering it to some higher being. “Also, don’t forget that the goal of the Host Club is to make everyone happy.” With that, he skipped away to the changing rooms.

“Wait, are we getting into costumes today?” Kaoru turned to Kyouya. “I thought we weren’t doing that until later this week.”

“We’re not.” Kyouya sighed and went after Tamaki. Very frequently, there were days when Kyouya couldn’t understand the whims of their king—this was one of those days. “Tamaki?” He asked, pulling back the curtain to one of the dressing rooms. “What are you doing?”

Tamaki turned, holding a clean button-down shirt and blue blazer in his hands. “I figured Itsuki should have a dry uniform for his first day,” he said with a smile. “This should be his correct size, right?”

Kyouya was dumbfounded for a moment. “Yes, that should be the correct size.”

“Good,” Tamaki said. He glanced back at the table where the other hosts sat. “Do you remember the first day we opened the club?”

“Hard to forget a day like that.” Kyouya chuckled. “You were bounding around the room like an over-excited dog, trying to pay attention to as many girls as you could. We had to enact the rotation system after that.”

“I couldn’t let just one person hold my attention for so long,” Tamaki cried. “It’s not fair to the rest of the world to keep this beauty for only a select few!”

“You would have worn yourself out otherwise.”

Tamaki grinned. “Maybe you’re right.” He sighed sadly. “But this is a new chapter in the history of the Ouran Host Club. What if people don’t like the new hosts?”

“Oh, _now_ you’re doubting them?” Kyouya set his book down and put a comforting hand on Tamaki’s shoulder. “You’ve had a lot of crazy ideas that have worked in the past. Taking in three new hosts and expanding our market was a big risk, but it’ll pay off like all your other ridiculous ideas have.”

Tamaki’s signature smile quickly came back. “Thanks, Mommy,” he said. “What would I do without you?”

“Crash and burn and fall into bankruptcy, Daddy,” Kyouya said.

Tamaki laughed, knowing deep down that it was the truth. Without Kyouya’s brain, the Host Club would fall apart, and so would the King.

“Hey.” Haruhi poked her head into the dressing room. “We’re ready.”

Tamaki cleared his throat and walked out confidently. “Good. Tell Renge to open the doors!”

* * *

 3:00 pm at long last chimed on Ouran’s pink clock tower. The hallway outside Music Room 3 was packed wall-to-wall with a cluster of excited and nervous students. Chatter echoed against the walls and rattled the windows, and the crowd only grew as more people passed by, joining simply out of curiosity.

The noise was broken at 3:01pm when Renge cracked opened the door, rendering the room silent.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” she said proudly, “our lovely hosts are ready for you.”

Finally, the giant double-doors of the music room flew open and a burst of light and joy flooded out as the curious students flooded in. The hosts were gathered and posed around a sofa in-between the two vase displays, waiting with inviting smiles.

“Welcome,” they said in unison.

As the students continued to fit into the music room, Tamaki stood up and walked forward to greet his subjects.

“Welcome,” he started, “familiar faces and newcomers, to the Ouran Host Club. My name is Tamaki Suoh, and I am the king of this fine group of hosts. I know many of you have heard of our club through whispers and rumor, but I am glad you have come to experience—and hopefully enjoy—our company for yourselves.” Tamaki brushed his hair back with his fingers and looked around the room. “Now, many of you may or may not know who we are or what we do, so I will explain: we are a service that simply gives you entertainment, be it talking, sitting and drinking tea, or transporting you to mysterious lands of both fantasy and far-off reality. We are but your humble servants, at your disposal.

“Each of our hosts gives you a different experience depending on what your particular interests are. We have the princely type, myself of course. We also have Kyouya Ootori, the cool type, Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin, the mischievous type, Mitsukuni Haninozuka, the boy Lolita, Takashi Morinozuka, the wild type, and Haruhi Fujioka, the natural.

“Our returning guests may notice some new faces in the crowd. It is my honor, my lovely guests, to introduce you to the new members of the Ouran Host Club: second-year Mika Miyamoto, the shy princess, first-year Kimiko Honda, the modern woman, and second-year Itsuki Yamada, the laid-back boy. I assure you, they are lovely people and lovely hosts, and I hope you come to adore them as much as we have.

“In order to see these lovely hosts before you, you can request them and we will have you all on rotation with one to five people with each host at a time. For the moment, Kyouya, Haruhi, and Mika will only be taking requests for girls; and Kimiko and Itsuki will only be taking requests for boys. The rest are free to choose whichever of us suits your tastes.”

Tamaki then pulled a red rose out of a nearby flower vase. “Now that we’ve gotten the speech out of the way,” he purred, “who would like to request the first guest? Don’t be shy, now.”

Once Tamaki’s speech was over, the room was dead silent. The only semblance of a sound heard was the occasional breath and cough from a student. A sudden panic flooded over the hosts, especially the king. The guests and hosts were at a stand-off for what seemed like hours. Perhaps the idea really had failed.

Then, a small girl with a black bob stepped forward. “I would like to request Miss Miyamoto.”

Mika gasped, her heart filling with excitement. Her first customer!

“I would like to request Honey-senpai,” a brunet boy with glasses said.

“I want to request Mori!”

“No, I want to request him!”

“I want to-”

“Please,” Kyouya said, breaking up the commotion as he stepped forward. “Each of you will get a chance to see our lovely hosts. However, I will need each of you to sign up with me, first. Just form a neat, orderly line, and we will get you situated quite easily.” As the students clamored into a wrap-around line, Kyouya opened his little black book and clicked a pen. “Now, who’s first?”

* * *

 “So, what’s your favorite desert, Mika?” A girl with pigtails at Mika’s table asked.

“W-Well, I don’t really have a favorite,” Mika answered, her cheeks bright pink. “I just like making everything. Cookies, cakes, tarts, brownies, all kinds of things! My parents taught me everything I know about baking, and we still make baked goods at our house every Saturday! Last week, we made…oh.” She sighed and shyly hid her hands in her face—a tactic she picked up from the twins. “I’m sorry. I’m rambling again, aren’t I?”

“No, it’s cute!” Another girl cried, leaning forward.

“Please, keep talking,” the girl with the bob begged. “We want to hear more.”

Mika drew her hands back down and looked between the girls. “Okay,” she said. “What else do you want to hear about?”

* * *

“Tell us about being on the swim team, senpai,” a short boy requested. “I bet it’s challenging.”

Itsuki shrugged. “Not really,” he said. “I’ve always loved swimming, ever since I was a little kid. My parents said that I was born with gills or something.”

“But doesn’t it mean you don’t get to be at home very much?” A boy jet black hair asked.

“I guess,” Itsuki said, leaning his elbows on the table. “But I don’t really get along with my parents that much. Besides, swim competitions give me a chance to meet interesting new people.” He gently ran his fingers along the black-haired boy’s arm. “Not as interesting as you, however.”

The kid practically melted at Itsuki’s tone, and the other boys couldn’t help but lean forward in hopes they would be flirted with next.

“Oh.” Itsuki spotted another boy out of the corner of his eyes. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there. Please.”

* * *

 “Come sit down,” Kimiko said with a grin. “There’s plenty of room. I was just telling the boys a funny story.”

A few other boys joined the other customers eagerly listening.

“Anyways,” Kimiko continued, “I told him that I could finish the equation before the calculator, but he didn’t believe me. All year long I had insisted I didn’t need to use those things, but they made me do it anyway. There was a pretty simple equation on the board and we wrote it down at the same time. Another friend counted us in and in the blink of an eye we were moving quickly to solve it first. He struggled with writing in the correct functions and I had trouble writing because my pencil snapped from the sudden stress. I pushed through either way and continued to scribble on my notebook. He was waiting for the answer when I suddenly slammed my pencil down and smiled. Ten seconds later the calculator showed the same answer I had written.”

“Wow, really?” One boy gasped in amazement.

“That’s amazing,” another said.

“Did your teacher see it?”

Kimiko giggled and shook her head. “No. But even if he had, he probably wouldn’t have liked me being smarter than his silly little calculator.”

* * *

 

Kyouya looked on with a smile as he made his way around the music room. The new hosts were adjusting well to impressing guests, and the others were having no problem entertaining the boys—it seemed that both genders enjoyed the Hitachiin’s brotherly love act, especially with a sunburned Hikaru.

“Kyou-chan!” Honey pranced over to him with Usa-chan under his arm. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many people in the club before. And everybody seems to be having a good time.”

Kyouya smiled down at the senior. “Yes, it seems that way,” he said. His eyes wandered to their King giving his signature performance for a table of students. “I suppose this isn’t the first time one of Tamaki’s crazy ideas ended up working out.”

“Well, the host club was a crazy idea,” Honey said, following Kyouya’s eyes to Tamaki. “He just knows how to make people happy.”

‘He most certainly does,’ Kyouya thought.

* * *

 At 5:30 pm, the last few guests had filed out of Music Room 3, leaving only the Host Club.

“Thank you so much for coming,” Tamaki said, waving goodbye. “We hope to see you again soon.” With that charming smile, he gently closed the door. “Well,” he turned around to the others, “we did it! The first day of the new Host Club was a complete success!!”

“Yay!” Honey cheered, happily tossing Usa-chan up in celebration.

“That was so exciting!” Mika said. “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten that much attention before.”

“I was surprised how many boys requested us,” the Hitachiins said.

Kimiko smirked. “I guess red is a good color on you.”

Hikaru managed to fight the temptation to snap at her again.

“You all did wonderful,” Kyouya said, taking a place beside Tamaki. “However, don’t think it will always be this easy. There are still many elements of being a member of the Ouran Host Club you’ve yet to experience.”

“But,” Tamaki interjected, “the good thing is that you will grow with experience! And you will only get better.” He locked eyes with Mika and gave her a thumbs-up, causing the girl to blush.

Haruhi sighed and looked out of the window. “Well, I should be getting home now,” she said. “I still have homework and a test to study for.”

“Shall I walk you home, Haruhi?” Tamaki asked.

“I think I’m fine on my own,” she said, grabbing her backpack as she headed for the door.

Mika opened and closed her mouth several times to say something, but settled for grabbing her own bag and heading out. “See you guys tomorrow!” She called back to the hosts.

“Goodnight, Mika-chan!” Honey said, holding on to Mori’s shoulders as the tall boy walked them out of the building.

“Yeah, I should be getting home too,” Tamaki said, searching for his own bag. “Kyouya, I’ll send you an email with the ideas I have for new cosplays tonight, okay?”

Kyouya nodded and packed up his laptop. “Sure,” he said. “Just a moment, I’ll walk down with you.”

The presidents started out of the room, followed by Itsuki and Kimiko, who stopped when her phone started ringing.

“You guys head out,” she said.

Itsuki stopped and looked back. “You sure? I can wait.”

“No, it’s fine.”

Itsuki just nodded and left.

Kimiko took out her phone and checked the caller ID—it was her father. “Dad?” She answered. “No, I just finished my club activities. I should be home soon…Okay, what is it?...Engaged? Don’t you think I’m a little young for-…no, you’re right. It’s never too young to think of married life.”

‘Of course he’s trying to marry me off,’ she angrily thought. ‘Sexist prick doesn’t think I can stand to be without a man.’

Kimiko walked towards the window looking over the parking lot. “I’m guessing you already have someone picked out...So who is he?” She gasped, noticing the boy in question get into his car. “Ootori…Yes, I know him from school…I don’t think he knows yet. But I’ll tell him…Of course I think it’s right. Why not hear it from his fiancée herself?...Okay, I’ll see you at home. I love you, Daddy.”

She ended the call, carefully watching as Kyouya’s car drove away. “Of all people,” she said quietly. “It just had to be him.”


	8. Fathers, Favorites, and Flirting

Kyouya arrived at school earlier than usual the next day—something about his driver needing to run errands for his father. He decided to spend some time just walking around the halls of Ouran, when it was quiet and peaceful. It was therapeutic, in its own way.

From down the hall, Kyouya heard the distant sound of clicking heels. He turned to the noise to see Kimiko stepping out of a classroom, her hair French braid crown.

“Miss Honda,” he said. “What are you doing here so early?”

Kimiko looked up and started walking towards Kyouya. “I was just practicing,” she said.

“Practicing what?”

“It’s not important,” she shook her head. “I’m actually glad you’re here. There’s something I needed to talk to you about.”

“Oh?” Kyouya raised his eyebrows in interest. “And what would that be?”

“Kyouya, have you spoken to your father recently?”

“Why do you ask?” He immediately shifted all of his focus on her. The sheer mention of his father had him trembling inside.

“Apparently both of our fathers have been speaking for a while now,” she paused as he nodded slowly. “About a month ago they began discussing a possibility of merging both of the companies. It was a mere theory at first because pairing a company known for medical supplies and one that deals primarily with motor vehicles didn’t sound like the best idea. However, recently the Ootori group has been looking into expanding globally.”

“I know we have. What is your point exactly?” Kyouya fixed his glasses.

“The Hondas have been looking to dive into a different kind of market to, let’s say, gain more profit.” She took a step closer to him, her expression unreadable. “Therefore, a week ago it was officially decided that the companies will work together. To seal the deal, both heads of the family agreed to marry off the heir of the Honda family to one of the Ootori sons.”

Kyouya was speechless, the information was not processing correctly in his head.

“Kyouya, don’t you get it? We’re engaged. I got the call yesterday and my father briefed me on the situation last night.”

Kyouya stood there in shocked silence for a good long while. ‘Engaged?’ he thought. ‘That can’t…and with _her?_ ’

Kimiko shrugged. “Well, we’re technically betrothed, but it’s still the same thing: we’re being forced to get married for the advancement of our families’ companies. Blah, blah, blah. You get the point.”

“W-Why didn’t anyone tell me about this?!” Kyouya snapped.

“I don’t know! Maybe he wanted to announce it to your whole family or something.” Kimiko started to unbraid her hair. “Anyway, I just wanted to let you know, since you obviously had no idea.”

Kyouya frowned, removing his glasses to clean them. “And what exactly do you gain from telling me this?” He asked. “If you’re trying to extort money or favor out of me just because we’re engaged-”

A small fit of giggles erupted from Kimiko as she let all her hair down, pinning her bangs back with her red barrette. “My god, you’re conceited,” she scoffed. “I don’t want anything from you!”

“Then why bother telling me before my father?”

“Because I hate this situation just as much as you,” she said. “The only reason my father is doing this is to keep me from taking over the company. I would like nothing more than to retaliate and say no, but…” A chill ran up her spine. “Let’s just say it’s very difficult to tell my father ‘no’.”

Kyouya felt a similar course through him. “I see,” he said.

Kimiko looked up at him. “I told you because I want us to try to get along,” she said. “I don’t want to end up spending the rest of my married life with someone I hate, so I think we should at least _attempt_ to be friends. Sound reasonable?”

“I suppose,” Kyouya said. “Right. Yes, I think we can manage that. But we should keep this engagement secret for the time being.”

“Of course. We wouldn’t want your fans getting jealous,” Kimiko grinned. “Anyway, I should head off to class.”

“Classes don’t start for another twenty minutes,” Kyouya said.

“I know,” she said, “but my teacher arrives early, and he sometimes lets me get ahead on my notes.” With that, she turned and left down the hallway.

Kyouya silently watched her leave, still unable to process what was happening. They were engaged to be married. Of course they wouldn’t actually be married until they both completed college, but the thought of an arranged marriage seemed inconceivable. Many of his classmates were betrothed when they were very young, and they were all heirs to their family; that idea didn’t even seem possible to him, the third son.

He looked out of the window at the clock tower, which glistening with the light of the sunrise. “I suppose this is what being treated like an heir feels like,” he sighed. He couldn’t be a husband, even if he wanted to marry one day. Who the hell would be crazy enough to willingly marry him?

“Kyouya!” Tamaki ran toward him from down the hall. “I’ve been texting you all morning. Why didn’t you answer?”

Kyouya kept his eyes on the clock tower. “I was busy,” he said. He brushed his hair behind his hair and turned to Tamaki. “Anyway, we can talk about it during lunch.”

“Oh. Okay.” Tamaki’s eyes fell. “Are you feeling alright? You look kind of pale.”

“I’m fine,” Kyouya said. “I’m just tired.”

Tamaki easily spotted the lie, but decided not to press, at least not here. “Okay,” he said with a smile. “Let’s get to class.”

* * *

 

“Is not!”

“Is too!”

“It is not!”

“Yes, it is too!!”

Honey walked up to the battle happening between the twins and Itsuki. “What’s going on?” He asked.

“Honey-senpai,” Itsuki said, “settle this for us. Is it the fire _wand_ , or fire _rod_? It’s rod, right?”

“No, it’s _wand_!” The twins argued back.

“If you played any of the original Zelda games…” Hikaru said.

“You would know that!” Kaoru finished.

“No, I’m telling you, it’s fire _rod_! Why would it be a wand?! He’s not a magician!”

“But ‘rod’ makes it sound like a sex toy,” Hikaru sneered.

“Eww, Hika-chan!” Honey cried, covering his ears.

All heads turned to the door as Kimiko walked in, buried in her book.

“Kimiko,” Itsuki said. “In _Legend of Zelda_ , is it called the fire _rod_ or fire _wand_?”

“Fire rod,” she said without looking up.

“BOOM!” Itsuki triumphantly laughed. “I told you so!”

The twins rolled their eyes. “She’s only agreeing with you because she doesn’t like us.”

“Nope,” Kimiko said as she sat down on the sofa. “It’s because Suki was right. And It’s just Hikaru I don’t like.”

“Okay, you know what-” Hikaru snapped.

“Don’t start this again,” Tamaki said from his place next to Kyouya at a table. “One fight with you was bad enough already.”

Hikaru frowned and walked back over to his backpack with Kaoru.

“What time is it?” Honey asked.

“It’s almost time to start our meeting before we open the doors,” Kyouya said, checking the time on his laptop. “Is everyone here?”

Mori looked up from studying his notes. “Mika,” he said.

The other hosts looked up from their activities to find that what Mori said was true—Mika was nowhere to be found.

“Oh yeah,” Tamaki said. “That’s weird. She was in class today…WAIT A MINUTE!! Where’s Haruhi?! I saw her at lunch today, but now she’s gone!! Is she sick, did something happen to my precious little girl?!”

“She has a meeting with one of her teachers,” Kyouya said. “She told me earlier this afternoon. But that doesn’t explain where Miss Miyamoto went.”

As if on cue, Mika burst through the door, out of breath with her hair in a messy ponytail. “I’m here,” she panted. “I’m sorry. I was…studying for a…a make-up test…and I lost track of time.” She sighed and took a pink box out of her backpack. “But I brought cookies!”

“We forgive you!” Honey bounded over to Mika and hugged her before opening the box. “Ooh, they look so yummy!”

Tamaki walked over with Kyouya in tow. “A make-up test? I thought you were doing fine in your classes.”

“I am.” Mika handed off the box to Honey. “It’s just conversational French I’m having trouble in.”

“Really?” Kyouya eyed her skeptically. “Last time I checked, you were getting very high marks in that class.”

Mika scratched her head. “W-Well, I’m slipping a bit,” she said, avoiding eye-contact with the Shadow King. “My teacher said I should hire a tutor, but I don’t want my parents to know I’m having trouble in school.”

“Well, if you need help that badly,” Tamaki said with a smile, “perhaps I could tutor you, _mon amie_! I am fluent, after all.”

Kyouya’s grip on his computer tightened.

Mika’s eyes lit up. “Really?! I mean, you don’t have to.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I would be more than happy to help!”

Mika smiled shyly. “Well, thank you! I promise, I’ll try not to disappoint you!”

“I hardly think that’s possible.” Tamaki put an arm around her shoulder and walked with her to the cookies. “So, we could meet up for about an hour after the club is over.”

“That sounds fine,” she said.

Kyouya silently watched them with an ache forming in the pit of his stomach. ‘He’s just being kind,’ he told himself. ‘Wait, why do I even care what he does with her?!’

“They’ve gotten pretty close, haven’t they?” Itsuki asked.

Kyouya jumped slightly. “Yes, I suppose they have,” he said. “But then again, Tamaki gets attached very easily. You’ve seen how he is with Haruhi.”

Suki shrugged. “Except Mika doesn’t shove him off,” he said. “But that’s none of my business. I’m gonna get a cookie.”

Kyouya grabbed Suki by the collar before he could leave. “Not just yet. We still need to get you and the girls measured.” He snapped his fingers. “Hikaru, Kaoru. Get the measuring tape.”

“On it!” The twins saluted the shadow king with two long rolls of yellow measuring tape in each free hand.

Everyone looked up from around the box of cookies, the new hosts slightly scared.

“What are we doing?” Kimiko asked.

“We have to measure you for cosplays!” Kaoru said.

“Since we’re going to do them almost every week,” Hikaru said, “it’s important they fit you correctly.”

“Ooh, fun!” Mika cheered.

“Can I get a cookie first?” Itsuki asked. Mika tossed him one, which he caught in his mouth with a grin.

Kimiko stood up. “Okay. Just as long as Kaoru measures me.”

“Don’t worry,” Hikaru said. “I didn’t want to touch you anyway.”

“Not that you would know how to,” Kimiko mumbled.

“What?!” Hikaru snapped.

Kimiko shot him an innocent smile. “Oh, nothing.”

“Anyway,” Tamaki said, gesturing the new hosts over to the twins, “we should get started.”

The newbies walked to the redheads as they got to work on the girls first.

Itsuki watched with piqued interest. “I had no idea you guys were so interested in fashion,” he said.

“It’s their family business,” Kimiko said as Kaoru measured her shoulders. “I’m guessing their mother makes most of the club’s costumes.”

Kaoru grinned. “I see you’ve looked into us,” he said.

“Sort of,” she said. “My mother reads a lot of fashion magazines and keeps up with your mother’s line. Her stuff is really lovely.”

“Yeah,” Mika said, her face turning slightly pink as Hikaru measured her waist. “I really loved her fall collection from last year!”

“Well, it’s good to know _someone_ ,” Hikaru shot a look at Kimiko, “appreciates her work.”

Kimiko fired a look back at him. “Did you not just hear me praising her a second ago?”

Hikaru was tongue-tied, trying to get back to work. “Well…shut up…” He moved down to measure Mika’s foot.

Kimiko’s turned around with a smirk as Kaoru moved to measure. “So, Tamaki-senpai, what are we doing for our first cosplay?”

“Why, thank you for asking,” Tamaki said with a flourish. “I was thinking of perhaps doing an Arabian theme. Or perhaps a _Midsummer Night’s Dream_ themed cosplay! Oh, could you imagine me as Oberon?”

Kyouya looked over his calendar. “We already have the plans for the Arabian theme set,” he said, “so that’ll have to go first. Still, we can plan ahead for next week.”

“Arabian theme sounds cool,” Itsuki said. “I wouldn’t mind showing some skin.”

Kyouya coughed awkwardly.

“Ooh, I wonder what colors I’ll get for that one!” Mika said. “Maybe blue, or eve-OHMYGOSH!!” Mika felt a hand touch her inner thigh and shot back, tripping over herself and knocking over into Kaoru and Kimiko.

“What the hell?!” Hikaru said. “I was just measuring your inseam, relax!”

Mika’s face was bright red. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbled. “I didn’t mean to panic…oh my gosh! Kimi, Kaoru, are you okay?”

“Yeah, we’re fine,” Kaoru said as he sat up, not even realizing at first that his hand was still on Kimiko’s breast. “Oh!” He snatched it back. “Sorry!”

“Did you do it on purpose?” Kimiko asked, giving Kaoru a look that could obliterate him if he answered wrong.

“N-No,” he said.

Within seconds, that sugar-sweet smile was back. “Then you’re forgiven. Just don’t do it again,” she said, standing up and fixing her dress. “Still, better you than Hikaru.”

“Hey!” The older twin cried.

Kaoru got to his feet and slid an arm around Kimiko’s shoulder. “Well,” he smirked at his brother, “that just proves who her favorite twin is.”

Kimiko playfully shoved Kaoru away. “Grow up! Am I finished?”

“No,” he said. “I still have to measure your hips and your inseam.”

Hikaru growled and stomped over to Itsuki. “You’re next,” he said. “Mika, you’re done.”

“Oh, okay,” Mika said, walking back over to the couch where Honey and Mori were sitting with her cookies. “It’s getting really tense between those two.”

Honey shrugged and took another cookie out of the pink box. “I don’t think it’s all bad tension,” he said. “They just don’t know her very well yet. They were the same way with Tama-chan.”

Mori hummed in agreement.

Mika smiled and took another cookie. “I’m sure you’re right, Senpai,” she said. “I just worry.”

From across the room, another altercation appeared to be starting as Kimiko finished her measurements and Hikaru refused to let Suki anywhere near Kaoru; and Tamaki shouting something about them being “one big happy family.”

Honey sighed and nervously finished off his cookie. “Yeah, I worry too,” he said. “But it’ll take some time before we’re all getting along well…I hope…”

* * *

 

Once the measurements had been taken care of—and the fight had broken up—the club went about the same as it had the day before. Haruhi finally showed up halfway through, but was easily forgiven thanks to Tamaki.

Once the day was over and the guests and hosts were gone, Tamaki and Mika were the only ones left.

“Alright,” Tamaki said, placing himself at a table. “Do you need your textbook and notes for our studying sessions, or-”

“I have a confession to make,” Mika cut him off. “I may have lied to you slightly.”

Tamaki arched a confused eyebrow. “Lied? About what?”

Mika breathed a guilty sigh before slumping in a chair across from Tamaki. “I don’t need help with conversational French,” she confessed. “In fact, I’m one of the top students in that class. I was just late because I lost my notes for a test I have tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Tamaki said, “well I appreciate you telling the truth about that. But I still don’t understand why you’re meeting with me if you don’t need help with class.”

“Because I need your help with something else.” Mika nervously played with her hair as she searched for the right phrasing. “Y-You see, there’s…well, there’s someone I’m…let’s just say I’m ‘interested’ in them, but I have no idea how to even begin to speak to them! And you’re the king of the host club and all, so I was hoping you would…m-maybe you would…”

A soft smile fell upon Tamaki’s lips. “I see,” he said. “You came to me for dating advice.” He placed a gentle hand on her shaking shoulder. “Well, you came to the right place. I’d be more than happy to help you, Mika!”

Mika shot up out of her chair and hugged Tamaki, unable to help herself. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“Anything for the pursuit of love!” Tamaki said. “So, who is the lucky person you’re trying to impress?”

Mika’s face turned lobster red. “I-I…uhm…I-I’d rather not say! A-And I would like you to promise me that you won’t tell anyone about this!”

Tamaki placed his right hand over his heart like a good scout. “I swear on my life,” he said. “I suppose I can always ask about your intended’s identity later down the line. It would help to know who exactly you’re trying to impress, but I’ll do what I can with your anonymous crush.”

Conquering Mika’s anxiety and general awkwardness would prove a difficult task for Tamaki, but he was up for the challenge and knew that his classmate—no, his friend—was willing to work hard for her goal.

He was going to get Mika and her crush together if it killed him!


	9. She's an Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY (late) NEW YEAR!!! Hope you all enjoy the update! :3

“These are all of them right?” Kaoru gripped the box in his arms and held the door open for Hikaru, who trailed in behind him holding his school books over a similar looking box.

“Yeah, this should be everything. We just have to set it up and leave his supplies in the closet.”

Their footsteps echoed down the empty hall. The school had just opened and only a few custodians seemed to be roaming around. Most of the students refused to show this early.

Hikaru picked the lock to their classroom and allowed Kaoru to step inside. Despite the fact that it was unlikely they would be caught, it had to be done quickly. They rushed over to the teacher’s desk and started to open the drawers. Each one took a side of the desk and emptied the contents into Kaoru’s empty box. After everything was neatly placed inside, Hikaru opened his box and pulled out an assortment of curse dolls, each a different size. He started to place one doll in each drawer as Kaoru hauled the box of supplies into the nearby closet. It took Hikaru another minute to arrange the top of the desk back to what it originally was.

They stepped back and admired their work with matching smirks.

“This’ll freak him out for sure,” Hikaru said.

“How much do we owe Nekozawa-senpai for all these curse dolls?” Kaoru asked.

“I left a check in the black magic club’s room,” Hikaru said as they walked out. “Well, that’s done…what the hell do we do now?”

 Kaoru shrugged, shutting the door behind him. “No idea.” He said.

A muffled crescendo of violins caught the twin’s attention.

“What the-?”

The music, now soft again, echoed in through a nearby air vent. The brothers turned to look at each other.

“Who’s here so early?” Kaoru stared at the vent in wonder.

“Let’s go see. It’s just upstairs, right? May as well peek, since we’re killing time anyway.” Hikaru tugged on Kaoru’s sleeve and both headed toward the sound.

They quietly rushed up to the second floor and down the hall. Neither had ever touched that section of the school; all of the rooms were large in size and had gigantic mirrors up along the walls. One of them had the door slightly ajar and the twins didn’t hesitate to peek inside.

It was a dance room that looked much like the others, with the tall mirrors and the metal bars in a corner. The familiar _Swan Lake_ suite continued to play as a girl came into view.

The twins watched her through the crack in the door as she danced the part of the Swan Queen.

She was dancing elegantly to the music. Her black hair was pulled up into a neat bun and she wore a black leotard with pink tights. Her feet pointed elegantly as she danced gracefully in her black pointe shoes.

“Who is that?” Kaoru whispered, mesmerized by each movement she made. He had never seen anyone dance with that much passion before.

“She looks like an angel.” Hikaru felt his heart pound as he saw the figure of the girl move in circles around the room.

She was immersed in the music, and that showed in how flawlessly she flew across the floor.

Kaoru narrowed his eyes slightly. “She looks familiar-”

“Shut up!” Hikaru whispered, his eyes never leaving the girl.

“Don’t tell me to shut up!”

“ _Shh_!”

“Don’t shush me either!”

Suddenly, the music stopped and the twins froze.

“Who’s there?” The girl called out. No one answered back. “I know you’re there.” She was met with silence again. She shook her head and mumbled, “Perverts,” before grabbing her speaker and shoving it in her bag.

The twins went back and peaked through the crack in the door as the girl took down her hair and pulled her glasses out of her bag. She put her glasses back on and faced the mirror, pinning her bangs back with a red barrette.

“Kimi…” Kaoru gasped.

Hikaru was in too much shock to move.

Kaoru quickly got to his feet and dragged Hikaru away with him—far away from the dance room and from Kimiko.

“Wow,” Kaoru sighed once they were out of her earshot. “I had no idea she could dance.”

Hikaru shook his head, his face pale and his hands sweating.

“Hikaru?” Kaoru gently rested a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“She’s…oh god, she’s…” It took Hikaru a moment before he could form words. “I mean, it makes sense that someone with a stick that far up her ass would be a ballerina.”

Kaoru chuckled a bit. “I guess,” he said. “But she still did look like an angel, _right_?”

Hikaru frowned and started to walk away. “Let’s just go,” he said.

“But does she?” Kaoru teased.

“We’re not talking about this!” Hikaru called back.

Kaoru rolled his eyes and followed Hikaru, not prepared at all to let this topic go.

* * *

After a long day of classes and boring activities—with the exception of one foreign language teacher running terrified from the school—the Host Club was gathered for their pre-club meeting.

“Is everyone here?” Kyouya asked, standing before the hosts next to Tamaki.

Tamaki quickly took a head count before sighing sadly. “No. We’re missing one.”

“Oh!” Mika spoke up. “Suki said he was going to be late. He had swim practice.”

“He’s late again?” Haruhi asked.

Kyouya rolled his eyes and wrote a few things down in his notebook. “Regardless, we have to start our meeting. Hikaru, Kaoru, what’s the status on the costumes for Friday?”

“The Arabian costumes will be done by Thursday,” Hikaru said, “so the newbies can try them on that afternoon before the club starts.”

“And the _Midsummer Night_ ones should be ready to try on by Monday,” Kaoru said, “so we can do that on Wednesday.”

“Why wait?” Tamaki asked. “Why put off what the people want to see any longer than usual?”

“You’re the one who set up the costume schedule in the first place,” the twins said. “If you want to make the change, go ahead.”

“Everyone just has to be here on time to try on the costumes,” Kyouya said.

Suddenly, Itsuki burst through the door, his uniform damp and his hair dripping. “I am so sorry,” he said, trying to catch his breath. “I thought we were going to be let out sooner.”

Tamaki sighed. “Suki, you need to manage your time better.”

“If you can’t,” Kyouya said, “we may just have to let you go entirely.”

“N-No, I can handle it!” Suki promised. “I’ll figure something out with my coach.”

Kyouya let out a dissatisfied noise, gesturing for Suki to sit.

Suki solemnly walked over to the couch and took a seat next to Honey, who was looking at him with wide eyes. “What is it?” The redhead asked. “Do I have something in my teeth?”

“Your hair’s wavy,” Honey observed, much to Suki’s horror. “Has it always been that way?”

“He probably straightens it,” Kimiko said.

“But why?” Haruhi asked. “What’s wrong with your natural hair?”

Suki took a towel out of his bag and ran it through his hair. “I just don’t like it curly,” he said curtly. “We have some time before the club starts. I can just straighten it quickly.”

“There should be outlets in the changing rooms,” Tamaki said. “If there’s nothing else we need to take care of, you can just do that now.”

“Boys!” Renge’s abrasive voice echoed as she entered the room. “I made it just in time! I was worried I wouldn’t make it before the club started!”

“Well, you’re right on time,” Kyouya said, gesturing to the girl. “Newbies, I’d like you to officially meet Miss Renge Houshakuji, our club manager.”

Mika quickly stood up and bowed. “Nice to meet you! I’m Mika Miyamoto.”

“Kimiko Honda,” she said with a smile. “I don’t think we got a chance to formally meet on our first club day.”

“Well, I had some stuff to take care of with my family back in Paris,” Renge said. “But it’s nice to have some more girls in the club! Finally, I get to meet some sensible girls who can appreciate the fan-service as much as I do!” Renge let out a hearty laugh.

Kimiko and Mika nervously scratched their heads. “Yeah, sure,” they said.

Renge stopped laughing, catching Suki’s eye. “Oh, I don’t think we met either,” she said, holding her hand out. “Nice to meet you, uhm…Suki, right?”

_Suki stood from the sofa and sauntered toward Renge. “Yes, I am,” he purred, taking her hand in his. “I’m happy I finally got to meet a lovely creature such as yourself, Miss Houshakuji.”_

_Renge blushed, turning her face away. “Oh, why thank you Suki-senpai.”_

_“Please,” Suki said, leaning close to her ear, “just call me Suki, darling.”_

_“Suki,” she said. “Oh, Suki...Suki.”_

However, in reality, Suki just sat dumbstruck looking at Renge.

“Uhm, earth to Itsuki,” Hikaru said.

“I think he’s shocked that he’s in the presence of a real otaku,” Kaoru said.

Finally, Suki snapped out of it, and stood up to shake Renge’s hand. “To meet you nice,” he said. “I-I meant you nice…meet to…hi, I’m Suki.”

A knowing glint appeared in both Kyouya and Kimiko’s eyes.

Renge giggled. “Yeah, I know,” she said, gently pulling her hand back. “You’re really wet...”

“Yeah,” Suki said. “But I guess that happens when you swim.” He laughed loudly, making the rest of the room feel heavy and uncomfortable. “...I like bows.”

The twins barely managed to hold back their laughter.

Renge could only respond with silent blinking.

“...I’m gonna go,” Suki said, sprinting to hide in the nearest changing room.

As soon as he was gone, the twins burst out laughing.

“I thought he was supposed to be the smooth one!” Hikaru cackled.

“He really has lost his touch, huh?” Kaoru added.

“Lay off, guys,” Haruhi said. “How would you feel if someone made fun of you for losing your cool like that?”

“Well, _they’d_ respond by cursing you out,” Kimiko said.

Haruhi grinned.

The twins shrugged. “Well, I guess it is difficult for anyone to look an otaku in the face,” they said.

“Hey!” Renge cried.

“That’s enough,” Tamaki said, suddenly serious. “Making fun of someone for being unable to express themselves is not the way of the Host Club. We have people unable to express their feelings for us every day, but you don’t make fun of them. How is this any different?” The Hitachiin’s were silent. “Exactly. Now, we have a bit of time before the club starts, so we should start setting up.”

Everyone slowly started to disperse to their stations.

“Haruhi,” Kyouya said, “go get the tea sets from the back room and start setting them out.”

“Okay.” Haruhi got up from her seat and started to the back.

“D-Do you need any help, Haruhi?” Mika asked, pink in the face. “I mean...if you needed any help, people could...I mean, I could...uhm…”

“Sure,” Haruhi said with a smile. “But they’re a bit heavy.”

“Oh, it’s no problem!” Mika followed Haruhi to the storage room.

Tamaki happily watched the girls walk off. “Oh, just look at them,” he said to Kyouya. “It’s good that our little girl is making friends with the other girls. Maybe it’ll bring out more of her feminine side!”

‘He said the same thing about Renge,’ Kyouya thought, rolling his eyes. “Speaking of her feminine side,” he closed his black book, “when were you planning to tell the new hosts about Haruhi’s gender?”

“All in good time, Kyouya,” Tamaki lied.

“You were going to keep it a secret forever, weren’t you?” Kyouya asked knowingly.

Tamaki sank a bit.

“Although I’ll admit that they’re not the most intelligent people,” Kyouya said, “they’re not idiots either. If it didn’t take long for the twins to find out, it certainly won’t take the others long. I think Kimiko may even already be aware of this little fact.”

“We’ll figure it out later, Kyouya,” Tamaki said. “...by the way, am I still sleeping over tonight?”

Kyouya looked at him in confusion. “We didn’t have anything planned,” he said, “but I suppose this isn’t the first time you’ve come over uninvited.”

“Yay! Sleepover with Kyouya!”

Kyouya gave the blond an amused grin. “You do know that a sleepover does involve _sleep_ , right?”

Tamaki waved a hand to his friend. “Don’t worry, I won’t keep you up too late.”

‘You said that last time, too,’ Kyouya thought.

* * *

“Tamaki-senpai, don’t you think it’s a bit unfair?” one of the King’s male customers asked.

Tamaki perked up slightly. “What’s unfair?”

“That you have to share your affections with both boys and girls,” he said. “I mean, wouldn’t it be more fair to just pick one or the other, like Kyouya?”

“Yeah,” a girl added. “You can’t give boys and girls the same kind of attention, so why not just pick one? I mean, girls are easier to cater to, right?”

“Wait a second,” the boy cried, “who said he was going to pick the girls?!”

“Ladies, gentlemen, please,” Tamaki said sweetly. “I see no reason why I can’t give boys and girls equal love. Isn’t that what the host club is all about; making sure everyone feels loved the same way?” He sighed sadly. “But if I’m neglecting you in any way, please pardon my stupidity. I don’t deserve to be in your presence if I’m leaving you so unsatisfied.” He bowed his head in shame. “Forgive me.”

Everyone at the table swooned and practically fainted.

“Wow, Tama-chan’s really going strong today,” Honey said. “He’s more popular than ever since we invited the boys in.”

“I think all this extra attention may be going to his head,” Haruhi said from her table. “But at least it’s something to keep him occupied.”

“Excuse me,” a male voice said, “but it seems you’re currently available for business, Mister Fujioka.”

Haruhi looked up to see the face of Daisuke Sato grinning down at her with half-lidded eyes. “Oh,” she said, “I’m sorry, but I’m only taking requests from girls at the moment.”

Although Daisuke was obviously disappointed, the grin didn’t leave his face. “That’s a shame.” He gently brushed Haruhi’s hand. “You’re wasted only attending to girls. You should let a true gentleman attend to you.”

Something in the pit of Haruhi’s stomach wasn’t sitting right. “Sorry,” she said, pulling her hand away. “You can always request someone else.”

“What are you doing back here?!” Tamaki snapped, appearing by Haruhi’s side. “I thought I made it very clear in the interview that you weren’t welcome back here anymore!!”

Daisuke’s grin vanished. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I didn’t realize that Haruhi was spoken for.”

Tamaki glared at him. “He’s not, but-”

“Then why are you acting like he belongs to you?” Daisuke asked. “Why are you stepping in and fighting his battles like you’re his boyfriend?”

“Because you’re making Haru-chan uncomfortable,” Honey said coldly, making everyone jump. “If you’re going to continue to bother him, then I suggest you leave. We have set rules for a reason.”

Daisuke slowly backed away from the third-year. “Okay,” he gulped, adjusting his tie. “I have better things to do anyway.” He turned away and walked out of the club.

The air suddenly felt lighter once Daisuke was gone, and everyone went back to their club activities; and from a small table, despite being surrounded by a group of interesting girls, Mika watched sadly as Tamaki worried and fussed over Haruhi.

And, unbeknownst to the rest of the club, Kyouya stared angrily for the same reason, though he wasn’t entirely sure why.


	10. Wait...what?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, many apologies for the late update. Thank all of you so much for reading and enjoying so far!

"Alright, I need someone to translate the next sentence to English." The teacher looked around the room for students who weren't paying attention. "Any volunteers?" A few kids raised their hands, but she payed them no mind.

In the back of the classroom, Itsuki was busy doodling hearts in his notebook. He'd spent the last two days practically smitten with the host club's manager, and it was becoming quite the distraction. His smooth manner would crumble into awkwardness whenever he caught a slight glimpse of Renge in the hallway, or thought about her cute face, or her pink bow, or her voice-

"Mister Yamada!" The teacher snapped.

"W-What?" Suki slammed his notebook shut.

"Translate the next sentence into English, if you wouldn't mind."

Suki nodded and stood up, holding up his textbook. "...uhm...where were we again?"

That earned him some giggles from the other classmates.

The teacher shook her head in disappointment. "Just sit down," she said. "Anyone else?"

"Hey, Suki?" A girl sitting beside the redhead whispered. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess," Suki said. "I'm just...a little distracted."

"Oh," she said. "Well, I hope you feel better."

"No talking!" The teacher snapped. "Unless you can translate the next sentence correctly.”

Itsuki was silent for the rest of class.

* * *

"Okay...no, you almost got it-OW!" Mika cried. "Stop pulling, it hurts!"

"It wouldn't hurt if you weren't such a baby," Hikaru said.

"Just bite your lip," Kaoru said, "or think that you're somewhere else."

"Where else would I-OUCH!!"

Tamaki burst into the changing room, his face turning pink when he saw the scene. "What's going on here?"

The twins rolled their eyes and let go of Mika's clothes.

"Ms. Clumsy got her hair stuck in the buttons on the costume," Hikaru said.

"We've been trying to help her get out, but she's being a baby about it,” finished Kaoru.

"You were pulling my hair," Mika said with tears in her eyes.

"If you don’t like it, we could always cut your hair out," they shrugged.

“NO!”

Tamaki sighed and walked over to Mika. "You twins are too much sometimes," he said. “Here.”

Mika winced as Tamaki worked his hands through her hair.

"Relax, this won't take long," he said. Finally, he worked her hair out of the buttons. "There we go! Those brutes just don't know how to be gentle."

"Bite me," the boys in question mumbled.

Mika smoothed out her costume before turning back to the mirror to fix up her hair. "Thank you, Tamaki," she said, her long brown strands now in a large bun.

Tamaki bowed to her. "Not at all, my dear," he said with a wink to her.

The twins cocked their eyebrows with intrigue.

"Tamaki," Kyouya said from the doorway, Kimiko close behind and in full costume. "The doors are opening soon. Is everyone ready in here?"

Tamaki stood straight with a smile to Kyouya. "I think so. We've just got some headdresses to put on, then we should be ready."

Kyouya shot a quick look of suspicion between the King and Mika. "Right. Put on your headdresses and get into position."

"On it!" Tamaki said. He glided out of the room, followed by the twins and Mika, the latter of which got a glare from Kyouya as she passed him.

"Something's going on between those two," Kimiko said.

"You think so?" Kyouya asked.

"No, you do," Kimiko said.

Kyouya shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous. Tamaki's just being kind. Besides, he's never this held-together when he gets crushes on people. If he had feelings for her, he’d be falling over himself trying to be impressive. You've seen the way he is with Haruhi."

"He doesn’t treat Haruhi like a crush so much as like a helpless kitten." Kimiko rolled her eyes at the look her fiancé gave her. "Look, it's probably nothing. Mika-senpai hasn't shown any interest in Tamaki-senpai beyond friendship anyway. And even if she did, Tamaki isn’t yours to control." Before Kyouya could respond, she walked away to take her place by the throne.

* * *

Once the doors of the host club opened, everything was in full swing. Both the boys and girls loved the cosplay, and the new hosts were taking to the attention in-costume very well.

The only downside was a little bratty kid Tamaki attempted to mentor quickly becoming a nuisance.

"Why do you have girls as hosts?" Shiro asked. "And if you have girls, why even have a cross-dresser in the bunch?"

"CROSS DRESSER?!" Tamaki cried, covering the kid's eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about. We just have our two lovely female hosts and our manager. There's no other girls here." He was just happy the girls in question were busy doing something else.

"I'm beginning to think Shiro may be a bit more trouble than he's worth," Kyouya said, taking extensive notes as Itsuki watched the scene beside him.

"Maybe," Suki said, "but Tamaki's getting an ego boost from it, so it can't be that bad, right?"

"That may be the worst part of it," Kyouya sighed. "Don't you have some customers waiting?"

"I did, but I needed to take a breather," Suki said, stretching his arms behind his back and earning a squeal of approval from the girls. "I've just been getting really distracted lately."

Kyouya glanced back at Suki's customers, all waiting for their host to come back. "This doesn't have anything to do with meeting Renge, does it?"

Suki wasn't sure what to say in response.

"You do remember our little rule, right?" Kyouya said, sending him a warning glare.

"Yes, I remember," Suki said, shaken. "I'm just gonna go back to my table." He turned away from Kyouya—still feeling the Shadow King’s glare on him—and went back to his guests.

"Sorry about that. I hope you can understand."

"Of course!" Most of them said, with the exception of a taller kid with messy hair.

"You're crushing on someone?" The guest in question asked.

Suki grinned, brushing his hair back smoothly. "Oh, it’s nothing. Even if I was, she could never distract me from all of you."

"She?!" The boys cried. "I thought you were gay!"

The room went deftly quiet, and everyone turned to Suki's table curiously.

"What? Oh, no," Suki shook his head before saying with a sly smirk, "I'm bisexual."

The room erupted with cries of delight from the girls, and they all rushed up to Suki to try to request him, making the boys extremely competitive for their token host's affections. The other hosts and Shiro watched on in shock.

"Wow, I had no idea the girls liked him so much," Honey said.

"I had a hunch," Mori replied.

"But now he's more popular than ever," the twins said.

"Maybe even more popular than Tamaki-senpai," Kimiko said.

Tamaki winced, going pale at the thought.

"I hope not," Haruhi said. "We don't need two of them."

Surprisingly, that didn't make Tamaki feel any better.

Amongst all the commotion, Shiro slipped away from the hosts, deciding quickly that they were all morons. He almost got away before running into Mika, sending them both tumbling to the floor.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" Shiro snapped.

"Don't tell me what to do you little-” Mika quickly pulled herself together. "I-I mean, it’s fine…Hey, why are you leaving? I thought you wanted to be Tamaki's apprentice."

"He's an idiot!" Shiro said. "He can't help me...besides, it's over anyway. He can't help me impress her.”

"Her?" She knelt down beside the boy. "Who's her?"

"Why should I tell you?!"

Mika winced, quickly trying to think of a good reason. "I...I really don't know...b-because there's no one else for you to talk to?"

The two were at a stand-off--or a sit-off, rather--for what seemed like ages before Shiro finally caved. He told her everything about Hina, their shared love for the piano, and how she was moving away to Germany with her family.

"I'm sorry," Mika said. "I don't know how hard that must be on you, but I can't do anything to help you."

Shiro huffed and turned away, hugging his knees together. "Figures."

"B-But Tamaki might be able to! I think the guests have cleared out by now, so maybe he can do something!"

"Like what?" Shiro asked. "Let me guess, you don't know."

"...n-no," Mika said. "But neither do you. And, I mean, what do you have to lose?"

Shiro looked at Mika, and without words they suddenly had a mutual understanding.

* * *

"Well, that could have been better," Kaoru said, changing out of his costume.

"I hope this doesn't mean Suki is the top now," Hikaru said. "That'll just end up going to his head, and we'll end up with another Tamaki."

Kaoru cringed at the thought. "I can't imagine what would be worse than that."

"Maybe two Kimikos," Hikaru mumbled.

"I don't think that would be so bad," Kaoru said. "Having her is already like having two Kyouyas."

"Yeah. One's just bitchier," Hikaru said.

"Why do you hate her so much?" Kaoru asked. "I mean, I know why you don't like Suki-senpai, but I think you're starting to warm up to him."

"Who said that?"

"But you still treat Kimiko like crap. Why is that?" Kaoru looked at his brother with a grin. "Is it because you like her?"

Hikaru looked outright disgusted. "Please! What in the hell gave you that idea?”

"Because you treat her like crap with no logic behind it," his brother said matter-of-factly.

"But, come on, how could I ever like her?"

"Well, she's funny, and smart, and talented, and kind of pretty."

"But she's also a know-it-all, an instigator, and treats everyone like crap just because she thinks she can."

"So you're admitting all the other stuff is true."

Hikaru huffed, grabbing his backpack and leaving the changing room.

Kaoru grinned and followed his brother suit. "Why are you getting so mad?"

"If you think all that stuff about her," Hikaru snapped, "why don't _you_ just go out with her?!"

"Because you're the one who said she looked like an angel," Kaoru teased.

"When are you going to drop that?!"

"When you get over your pride and ask her out."

"Fine, I will!"

"Good-wait, what?"

"I will ask her out, then!"

Kaoru blinked several times, trying to process the information. "Wait, what?"

Hikaru stormed over to where Kimiko was sitting on the sofa. "Hey," he said, less than kindly.

The realization that Kyouya might be around dawned on Hikaru. It made him immediately change his approach. Neither one of the twins feared the vice president, but no one wanted to be on his bad side. It would be best to move in secrecy.

"I don't want to hear your petty insults, Hitachiin," Kimiko said, keeping her eyes on her textbook.

"Do you want to go out with me?" Hikaru asked.

Kimiko looked up from her book horrified. "What?"

The question even got the attention of Honey and Mori.

Hikaru quickly checked to make sure Kyouya couldn't hear before swallowing his pride; too late to turn back now. "I want to take you out on a date."

"Why?" Kimiko asked.

"Because...b-because I want to. And because you're cute when you do ballet, I guess."

"Hang on, you were the pervert spying on me dancing the other day?!"

"Yeah," Hikaru shrugged. "But I complimented you, so why does it matter?"

Kimiko stood to hit Hikaru, but a look from Honey stopped her. She took a deep breath in before responding. “I appreciate the offer, but I’d rather not go on a date with someone who makes an effort to treat me like crap every chance they get.”

“T-Then I won’t treat you like crap!” Hikaru said.

“That still doesn’t make up for how you’ve acted toward me practically since we met! How do I know you’re not just doing this to prove a point or win money?”

Kaoru fought back a chuckle.

Hikaru’s face was dark red, both from embarrassment and frustration. “Look,” he sighed, “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I-…let me take you out to make it up to you. Please?”

Kimiko didn’t know how long she stood there, arms crossed and contemplating Hikaru’s offer. The tension was thick in the room, and it didn’t help that other people were watching the scene, one of them being Hikaru’s brother. After a long while, she let out a sigh of defeat. “I guess you can take me to the movies.”

“R-Really? Okay. So I’ll pick you up tomorrow?”

“Sunday,” she said. “One-thirty. Don’t be late.”

“I won’t!” Hikaru looked back at Kaoru with a smug grin.

Kaoru shot him a similar grin back, but something didn’t feel right. He’d gotten what he wanted, so why was he disappointed?

Kimiko went to grab her backpack as the other hosts came out of the changing room, only to be stopped by Kyouya’s voice.

“Just a moment,” he said. “There’s one thing we have to take care of before you all leave.”

“Aww, what?” The twins groaned.

“It won’t take long.”

“What is it, Kyouya?” Mika asked.

“Yeah, what is it Kyouya?” Tamaki asked, fearful.

“Haruhi,” Kyouya said, “could you come over here for a moment, please?”

Confused, Haruhi walked over and stood beside Kyouya.

“Mommy,” Tamaki said, teeth gritted, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to tell the others about you-know-who just yet!”

“Did he just call Kyouya ‘mommy’?” Suki whispered Mori.

Mori nodded. “You’ll get used to it.”

Kyouya sighed. “Left to your own devices, you would keep the secret forever, Tamaki.”

“What secret?” Mika asked.

“Oh!” Haruhi caught on. “You mean not telling them that I’m a girl."

 Tamaki froze in shock, watching as a smug grin grew on Kyouya’s face. For the longest time, the room was silent—the newbies trying to process the information, and the other hosts waiting for some sort of response.

“You’re a girl?!” Suki cried, his mouth agape.

The twins snickered.

“I knew already,” Kimiko said.

Kyouya chuckled under his breath.

“Oh, that explains a lot,” Mika said, her cheeks turning pink. “I had a feeling, but…I didn’t know for sure.”

“I’m guessing no one outside of the club knows about this, right?” Kimiko asked.

“Yeah,” Haruhi said. “Well, no one else at Ouran knows. Everyone else in my neighborhood knows.”

“Well, your secret’s safe with us, Haruhi!” Mika said, saluting her with a smile, which Haruhi returned.

“You’re a girl?!” Suki repeated, earning an eye roll from most of the room.

The twins locked eyes, mouthing to each other, “One more Tamaki.”

* * *

“Why did you tell them Haruhi was a girl?!” Tamaki cried, curled under Kyouya’s kotatsu in his pajamas. “I told you, I was going to tell you when the time was right!”

“Keep your voice down,” Kyouya said, setting down two cups of tea on the table. “Stop pouting. They took the news well, and all of them are sworn to secrecy. Haruhi’s secret it safe like you wanted, right?”

Tamaki pouted. “I mean, I guess,” he said, sipping his tea. “…they didn’t seem very shocked at all.”

“I told you,” Kyouya said, “they’re smarter than they look…save for Suki, of course.”

Tamaki laughed, “I guess so. When am I going to remember not to doubt you?”

“Knowing you, never.” Kyouya took out his phone to check the time. “It’s getting late.”

“We don’t have school tomorrow. Staying up later won’t kill us.” Tamaki sighed, laying down on the floor and staring up at the ceiling.

They sat in comfortable silence for a long while, Kyouya sipping his tea and Tamaki doing nothing; which was odd, because he was always doing something.

“You’re oddly quiet tonight,” Kyouya remarked after another five minutes.

“Hmm?” Tamaki kept his eyes up ahead.

“You’re not prattling away about nothing like you usually do at our sleepovers.”

“I don’t prattle!”

“Yes, you do. I’ve learned to tune most of it out.”

“Rude!” Tamaki playfully smacked Kyouya’s leg. “I’m just thinking.”

“About what?”

“Have you ever been in love, Kyouya?”

The brunet choked on his tea. “What kind of a question is that?” He said through coughs.

Tamaki shrugged. “Just wondering. I’m usually good at telling when people are in love, and I’ve never seen it on you. It just makes me wonder if you’ve ever felt it.”

“You don’t honestly believe I’m heartless, do you?”

“I can’t tell sometimes, Kyouya. You’re like an enigma wrapped in a mystery sprinkled with a little bit of the devil.”

“Watch it, Suoh.” Kyouya glared.

Tamaki laughed in response. “But really, have you ever loved anyone?”

“Of course I have. I love my sister, and I loved my mother-”

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

Kyouya met Tamaki’s wide eyes, his heart and reserve quickly melting. “I don’t believe I have, no,” he said.

“Why not?”

“I suppose I’ve never seen the point of falling in love so young. Or…” He sighed. “I don’t know; it could be a number of things.”

“Maybe you just haven’t met the right girl yet.”

Kyouya responded with a grunt, turning back to his tea.

His smile gone, the blond sat up, his eyes still on Kyouya. “What do you think it feels like?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Kyouya said. “My eldest brother doesn’t talk about that, and my father…he doesn’t believe in it.”

“Oh.” Tamaki’s eyes focused on the outside, the dimly-lit lawn of the Ootori estate sparkling with dew in the moonlight.

“What brought this on?” Kyouya asked.

“Oh, nothing,” Tamaki said with a wave of his hand. “Mika asked me about it the other day, and I was just wondering what you thought.”

The girls name hit Kyouya like a wrench to his stomach. “Miyamoto?” A hint of upset sneaked into the question; but why was he upset?! “Why was she asking you about love?”

Tamaki’s face turned pink. “Oh, nothing!” He said quickly. “It just randomly came up during one of her tutoring sessions. Nothing for you to worry about.”

Kyouya frowned. Tamaki never kept secrets from him, and not for very long. It didn’t make sense for him to be hiding anything unless…no. Kyouya cast the thought aside and stood up. “I’m going to bed. You should too.”

Tamaki watched Kyouya walk upstairs, stunned, for a good minute before clearing his throat and following after his friend. “Mind if sleep in here?” He asked once they reached Kyouya’s bedroom.

“You always do, anyway.” Kyouya took off his glasses and set them on his bedside table.

Tamaki sat down on the futon made up beside Kyouya’s bed, his eyes stuck on his friend. “Are you okay?” He asked

“Leave it alone,” Kyouya mumbled in response, his back turned to the blond.

“Kyouya-”

“Just go to sleep, Tamaki.”

Kyouya didn’t yell, but his tone informed Tamaki that he’d hit a nerve, and that it would be better handled in the morning. Tamaki curled up under the blanket and just stared at Kyouya’s shape on the bed for twenty minutes until his eyes began to droop, wishing he could figure out what was going on in his best friend’s head.

Soon enough, with the moon shining through the uncovered window, Tamaki’s eyes closed and he fell asleep to Kyouya’s soft snoring.


	11. Confusing Feelings

_“Kyouya,” Tamaki’s sweet voice said, so close to Kyouya’s ear. “Kyouya, wake up.”_

_Somehow, Kyouya was not at all upset that Tamaki had woken him from his sleep. He was just confused that the blond sounded so…affectionate. “What time is it?” He mumbled, his eyes still shut._

_“Not too early.” Tamaki said._

_Kyouya sat up in bed. His cheeks burned bright pink when he saw Tamaki sitting at the edge of his bed, shirtless. ‘Why am I getting so worked up? I’ve seen him shirtless plenty of times.’ He thought. ‘Wait, didn’t he go to bed with his shirt on?’_

_“I told you not to wake me up,” he said, casting the thoughts aside._

_Tamaki laughed as he stared down fondly at his friend. “You don’t seem very angry, Kyo,” he teased. “I wanted to watch the sunrise with you.”_

_“Sunrise?” Kyouya looked out the window, seeing the sun just beginning to peak out over the horizon._

_“It’s lovely, isn’t it?” Tamaki sighed, leaning back on his hands. Each golden strand of his hair sparkled in the light of dawn. “The sun is so beautiful.”_

_“…yes, it is.” But Kyouya was not looking at the sunrise; he was looking at Tamaki. He caught a glimpse of the blonde’s hand on top of the comforter, a force inside him begging his fingers to inch closer, closer, closer…_

With a gasp, Kyouya woke from his dream. He rubbed his eyes, looking up at the blur of colors and shapes that was his ceiling. ‘Of course it was a dream,' he thought. ‘Perfect vision without my glasses on would only happen in a fantasy.’

He reached over to the bedside table and grabbed his glasses. Once his vision was clear, he looked down at Tamaki, still fast asleep. 'He’s still wearing his pajama shirt, too,’ Kyouya thought, letting his head fall in between his knees. ‘Why was I dreaming about Tamaki? And why did it feel so… _nice_?'

“Mph, mama?” Tamaki mumbled.

Kyouya slowly turned his head to look at Tamaki—the _real_ Tamaki—half-asleep and rubbing his eyes. “What is it, Tamaki?” He asked, irritated.

Tamaki sat up, combing his fingers through his hair. “…I’m sorry about yesterday,” he said. “I don’t know what I said to make you mad at me, Kyo, but I’m sorry.”

Kyouya couldn’t help the blush that creeped onto his cheeks. Tamaki never called him ‘Kyo’ before, and he looked so upset. “Don’t worry about it,” Kyouya said, turning his face away. “I’ve been on edge all week. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Oh.” Tamaki blinked a few times before returning to his default smile. “Good. What’s for breakfast? I’m starving!”

“Why don’t you go ask the chefs?” Kyouya asked, pushing himself out of bed. “You should know by now that I never know what’s for breakfast.”

Tamaki laughed softly and stood up. “I guess some things never change,” he said. “I’ll be right back.” Tamaki rushed downstairs like a child off to the kitchen.

Kyouya eventually went downstairs, taking the time before Tamaki returned to get dressed. As he removed his shirt, a reminder of the dream hit—the perfect sunrise, his perfect vision, Tamaki’s perfect body-

“Wait, no!” he said aloud, checking afterwards that no one was around. He shook his head and put a clean shirt on. “It was just a dream,” he said, putting on a pair of jeans. Regardless of his cool persona, Kyouya was still a teenage boy, which meant his hormones did strange things from time to time. Besides, there was nothing wrong with him acknowledging that Tamaki was very attractive, even on a subconscious level…right?

“Kyouya.” Kyouya’s father knocked on the door. “Are you decent?”

“Yes,” Kyouya said, slipping on a pair of socks and his house slippers.

Yoshio opened the door and walked into the room, dressed up in a three-piece suit. “We need to talk. Sit.”

Kyouya silently followed his father’s order, sitting with his hands clasped in his lap.

“I’m sure you’ve already been told,” Yoshio started, his hands in rest behind his back, “you are to be married to the Honda family’s heir, Kimiko.”

‘No need to remind me,’ Kyouya thought. He’d forgotten about the engagement, if only for a moment. “Yes, father,” he said. “She told me earlier this week.”

“Of course, you won’t be actually marrying her until after graduation,” he said, his tone cold. “Just as well, we will be having the Honda family over for dinner next Wednesday evening at six. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you to make a good impression on the rest of the Hondas as well as your fiancée.”

“Of course, father.” Dinner on that night would definitely mean Kyouya would miss the club meeting, as would Kimiko; and there were certainly more than a few hosts and customers who would ask questions.

“Very well.” Yoshio started to leave, but stopped in the doorway. “Don’t disappoint me, Kyouya.” With that, he left, passing Tamaki on his way out.

“What was your dad doing in here?” Tamaki asked.

Kyouya took his glasses off, cleaning the lenses with his shirt. “He wanted to talk to me about something,” he said.

“What about?”

“Nothing you need concern yourself with.” Kyouya put his glasses back on and looked up at Tamaki, smiling when noticed strawberry jam smeared on the blonde’s lip. “Are you incapable of eating food now?”

“Oh, I almost forgot! Your chef made fresh jam! It’s delicious. I had some with toast while I was in the kitchen.”

“Then you should get dressed for breakfast.” Kyouya stood up. “And wipe off your face.”

Tamaki blinked, sticking his tongue out to taste the stain on his face. “Why didn’t you tell me that was there?! I look ridiculous!”

Kyouya laughed. “It’s not my job to be your mother,” he said.

“Not to me, just to our children!” Tamaki corrected as he wiped away the rest of the jam.

Kyouya rolled his eyes and left to the kitchen, the marriage once again forgotten.

* * *

 

“Where is it? Where is it, where is it, where-here it is!” Mika grabbed a jar of black molasses off the grocery counter. “Papa, I found it!” There was only one brand of black molasses the Miyamoto family used for baking, and it could only be found in a commoner’s supermarket. “Papa?” Mika looked around the isle, but her father was nowhere to be found. She shrugged and walked down the vegetable aisle.

“Okay, ginger, ginger. Where are you, ginger? Here you are, ginger!” Mika sang, reaching to grab it at the same time as another hand. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“No, it’s fine…wait, Mika-senpai?”

Mika met eyes with the owner of the hand, who just happened to be Haruhi. “Oh, Haruhi, hi!” She said, just a bit too loud. “What are you doing here?”

“…buying groceries,” Haruhi said. “What are you doing here? Don’t you hire people to get groceries for you?”

Mika blushed. “N-No, not us!” She said. “My papa and I like to get our own groceries, especially for our Saturday baking. We used to live in this neighborhood before we moved to a bigger house.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that.” Haruhi smiled, looking down into Mika’s cart. “So, what are you guys making?”

“Ginger snap cookies. It’s my grandmother’s old recipe, so we’re making them for her birthday tomorrow.”

“Aww, that’s sweet."

Mika could only respond with a smile.

Haruhi’s eyes trailed off for just a moment, and her expression shifted into annoyance. “Dad!”

Mika turned to see someone attempting to hide behind a display of canned soup.

“I saw you, Dad!” Haruhi said. “I thought I told you not to follow me when I go shopping anymore!”

With a look of shame on his face, Ranka—very well made-up—came out from behind the soup. “I’m sorry, Haruhi,” he said, “but you know how Daddy worries about you…ooh, who’s this lovely lady?”

Mika politely held out her hand to shake. “I’m Mika Miyamoto,” she said. “I’m a…” Friend? Acquaintance? Fellow club member? What had Haruhi told her dad she was?! “I know your daughter from school, sir. Ma’am! Haruhi’s parent?”

Ranka laughed. “Don’t worry, sweetheart,” he said, “you can just call me Ranka. I recognize your name, actually. Haruhi’s told me about you!”

“S-She has?” Mika asked, her face turning pink.

“Okay,” Haruhi interrupted, “I think it’s time for you to go. I have to finish shopping, alone.”

“Oh, but why? I want to talk to your friend some more.” Ranka said. “She seems very sweet.”

“Dad!”

“Mika?” From another aisle, a plump man with a full beard appeared, carrying a basket full of various fruits. “There you are! I’ve been looking all over. Your mother just called. She wants us to make fruit tarts too, now.”

“What? But Grandma’s birthday party starts early tomorrow. We won’t have time!” Mika said.

“We will if we used glazed fruit,” the man said. “I know it won’t taste as fresh, but-…oh, I’m sorry, who are you people?”

Mika sighed, setting her basket down. “Papa, this is my…this is Haruhi Fujioka, and her father. I know Haruhi from school, and I just met her dad.”

“Oh, well, pleased to meet you! I’m Sora Miyamoto,” he said, shaking Ranka’s hand.

“Ryoji Fujioka,” he said, “but you can just call me Ranka.”

“My word, I just love your hair!” Sora said. “Is this all natural?”

“Papa!” Mika cried.

“The color isn’t,” Ranka said, “but I did grow it out myself. Lovely, isn’t it?”

“Dad? You were just leaving?” Haruhi urged, gesturing towards the door.

Ranka waved a hand at her. “Not now, Haruhi. Grownups are talking.”

Both Haruhi and Mika wanted nothing more than to smack their heads into the nearest wall until they both fell unconscious. The girls exchanged a look as their fathers talked and silently slipped away, paying for their groceries before walking out of the store.

“I’m so sorry about my papa,” Mika said as they walked down the street. “He gets very excited whenever he meets new people. We don’t get to meet many new people now that aren’t…well, rich and snooty.”

Haruhi laughed. “No, it’s fine. At least your dad doesn’t stalk you all the time. I swear, he’s just like Tamaki-senpai.”

Mika shrugged. “That explains why you can put up with him, then,” she said.

Haruhi looked back at Mika with a soft smile. “Well, it was nice seeing you, Senpai, but I should get home. I have to put this stuff away.”

“Oh, okay. Sure. Of course…” Mika nervously bit her lip as Haruhi started to walk away.

_Three days earlier…_

“So,” Tamaki said, pacing around the vacant music room, “the first step to impressing someone is to appeal to their tastes. Figure out what they like.”

Mika nodded, taking careful notes. “Figure out…what…they like.”

“But that isn’t enough!” Tamaki said, index finger extended towards her. “Appeal to their tastes, but make it something they’ll remember you for. Anyone can go out and buy flowers or chocolates, but a gift from the heart is much more precious.”

“Oh...like what?”

Tamaki tapped his chin. “Well, you like to bake, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then bake them something!” Tamaki said. “And make it personal! Make them a treat that only you can make, so they’ll know you took extra time to make it just suited perfectly for them.”

“That’s brilliant!” Mika said, beaming. “Oh...but I don’t know what their favorite dessert is, or if they even like dessert.”

“You can just ask them, then.”

“You say it like it’ll be easy.”

Tamaki knelt in front of Mika, offering her a sweet smile. “Do you care about this person?”

Mika nodded.

“Well, you have to be the one to take the first step,” he said. “Come on. You only get so many chances to do what you want in life, so why not take it?”

_Present Day…_

“H-Haruhi, wait!” Mika ran across the street.

Haruhi stopped in her tracks, turning around when she heard Mika call her name. “What is it, Senpai?”

Mika took a moment to catch her breath before speaking. “I just…I wanted to know…w-what kind of sweets you liked.”

“Oh. I mean, I don’t really eat a lot of sweets.”

“…you don’t like sweets.” Mika wanted to just crawl in the nearest gutter and just live there for the rest of her life.

“But those fruit tarts your dad was talking about sounded tasty,” Haruhi said with a smile.

Hope! There was hope! “T-They are!” Mika said. “They’re much better with fresh fruit, though. Glazed fruit is nice, but it’s not the same.”

“Right.” Haruhi nodded. The two fell into silence, occasionally glancing at the car or person that passed by. “Is that all you wanted?”

Mika nodded, her eyes sparkling. “Yeah, that’s all! I’ll see you on Monday!” She skipped toward the street, hailing a cab.

Haruhi waved goodbye, wondering what she was going to make for dinner as she made her way home.

* * *

 

The next day was sunny with only a few clouds in the sky—the perfect weather for a date. Hikaru had spent the better part of Saturday trying to figure out what movie he would take Kimiko to, eventually settling on a horror movie he knew was going to be terrible; at the very least, they could have a good laugh. Kaoru helped him prepare an outfit, and even talked him into wearing cologne.

“What? Why?”

“Just do it, it’s important.”

“But why?”

“Because she’ll notice it.”

“No she won’t, it’s just cologne.”

“Oh trust me, she will definitely notice.”

 “Do you think I should bring flowers?” Hikaru asked.

“I don’t think she’ll care if you bring flowers,” Kaoru shrugged. “You’re overthinking this.”

“I’m trying to make up for the way I treated her. Excuse me for trying to be thorough!”

Kaoru smiled, fixing Hikaru’s hair. “Then she only thing she’ll be looking for is if you’re being nice to her. Just relax.”

“I am relaxed." Hikaru said.

“You can’t lie to me, Hikaru.” Kaoru let his hands fall to his sides. “You’re going to be fine. At the very least, you’re trying.”

“Is that good enough?” Hikaru had a nervous smile on his face. “I really want this to work out.”

“If you are confident and you’re nice to her, then you might get ahead with her.”

“Okay, then I will get her flowers on the way, and maybe take a car that’s not that nice to her place.” Hikaru quickly finished getting ready, not noticing his shoes were still missing.

“Why would you do that?” Kaoru took a seat on the bed by their closet. “You don’t need to go that far.”

“You said I need to impress. I’m pretty sure she has this image of me being a rich jerk, and if I can tone it down, then it will only benefit me. I won’t take the worst car we have, but we have that car that’s a little older right? I can ask can use it.”

“It better not be the Honda.”

“Come on, I’m not _that_ tacky.”

Hair done, cologne sprayed, and shoes finally put on, Hikaru left the house with his driver. Twenty minutes later, they were pulling up to Kimiko’s mansion in their Honda Civic.

The red haired teen took a deep breath before stepping out of the car. The house was intimidating to say the least. It stood at least three stories tall with a large front Japanese style garden. The gate was a nine-foot-tall monster guarding the Honda grounds from the rest of the world. He would have to take the path all the way to the front if he wanted to even come close to the house.

A brisk walk later, Hikaru stood in front of the Honda household door, trying to decide between using the doorbell and the heavy knockers on the door. ‘Is this a test? Which one is politer?’ Without any more hesitation he grabbed the knocker and let it hit once. The door jerked open to reveal a small girl, a replica of Kimiko Honda, staring at him.

“U-um, hello?” Hikaru said.

“Who are you?” Her voice was soft, monotone, and possibly the cutest thing Hikaru had ever heard. There was no doubt this was his date’s sister.

“I’m here to see Honda Kimiko, can I come inside?”

“Are you that rich jerk?”

“I-I guess so…”

“Nope!” And with that the door slammed in his face.

‘Yup, that’s her sister.’

Hikaru figured he might as well use the doorbell in an attempt to get some other person to answer, and to his delight a young boy opened the door next.

“You’re Hitachiin Hikaru, right?” The boy raised his eyebrow as he looked him up and down.

“Yes, that’s me. May I come in?” Hikaru showed the bouquet of flowers he was holding as a sort of peace offering.

“I guess so, I’m sorry about earlier. Emiko can be protective, especially when she sees boys like you come to our home and request to see our sister. Kimi is very busy most of the time.” He paused to look back at Hikaru. “So if you want to waste her time and energy, I wouldn’t mind it one bit. All right, please wait here while I go fetch her.”

“Okay, is she almost done?”

“I don’t know, just sit and don’t touch anything.” The rather booming voice of the young teen intimidated Hikaru and he didn’t hesitate to take a seat at the nearest chair.

The clicking of heels interrupted them barely five seconds after.

‘Oh no,’ Hikaru panicked, ‘I didn’t think this through. What if she’s wearing all black? Maybe I should have asked. What if it looks really bad? Do I just go along with it and pretend nothing happened?’ Kimiko emerged from around the corner, making Hikaru’s jaw immediately drop.

Much to Hikaru’s —and her brother’s—surprise, she donned an off white long sleeved blouse with tear drop shaped slits going from her elbow up to her shoulder, a pastel pink skirt, and oxford white and pink heels. Her glasses were gone and she was actually wearing makeup. To top it off, her usual red barrette was replaced by an off-white hair clip.

In a word, she looked beautiful.

“Shin’ichi, what’s going on? Why did Emiko run off to me?” She stopped mid step, noticing Hikaru. “Oh, you’re here.”

“These are for you.” Hikaru thrust the bouquet forward towards her. “I brought my driver, so you don’t have to worry about anything.”

“Okay, just give me a second and I will meet you outside.” She offered a smile and took the flowers. “Thank you Hikaru.”

A pink blush spread across Hikaru’s cheek. “I’ll be just outside.”

Kimiko stood still and watched him walk out before turning towards her brother. She knew she had to be careful or more trouble would come her way, especially if Shin’ichi was involved.

Back near the entranceway, Hikaru was nearing the door, confident that he was moving in the right direction with Kimiko. ‘Hopefully,’ he thought, ‘she won’t hate me anymore after this.’

“She told me you’re a butt-face,” a tiny voice said.

Hikaru jumped, turning to see Emiko Honda staring at him with her big, black eyes. “Jeez, kid,” he sighed. “Where did you come from?”

“My mommy,” Emiko answered.

“…right.” He knelt down so he could be at her height. “How old are you?”

“Eight.”

“Do you go to the elementary school at Ouran.”

Emiko nodded.

“How come I never see you around?”

“People are stupid.”

“You know; you look a lot like your sister-”

“Did you bring something for me too?”

Hikaru’s eyes widened and he quickly looked through his pockets. “Do you like chocolate?”

“Candy is bad for you.” She said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Well, what if I go get you a toy?”

“Toys are a waste of time; books are a world of knowledge.”

He took out a bill from his pocket and offered it over. “Here, take money and get something.”

“I already have money.”

“Look kid, I just trying to make a good imp-”

“All right,” Kimiko said, rounding the corner, “sorry if I took long, but I am ready to go now.” Kimiko reached over to give Emiko a brief hug. “Don’t let Shin’ichi get to you, okay?” She gave a brief wave to her sister as Hikaru led her down the stone path back to his car. Upon looking at it she raised an eyebrow.

“Really? You brought a Honda?”

Hikaru could hear Kaoru’s “I told you so” from miles away. “I thought it would be funny?”

Kimiko rolled her eyes and got into the car. “Where are we going?”

“A commoners’ movie theater.” He sat down next to her. “There’s this really bad horror movie playing at 1:30.”

“If it’s bad, why are we going to see it?”

“Because it’ll be funny, duh.”

Kimiko didn’t look impressed at all.

‘Great start, Hikaru,’ he thought. “If you don’t want to see it, we can go to something else.”

“No, no.” Kimiko sat back with a sigh as the car began to drive off. She did promise herself that she would _try_ to give Hikaru another chance. Smiling, she turned back to him. “It could be fun. I just hope you don’t scare easily.”

Hikaru scoffed. “Please, I have nerves of steel! There’s no way this movie could scare me.”

As it turned out, the movie subverted both teens’ expectations.

Halfway through _The Ghost of Mount Haunte_ , Kimiko found herself unable to stop laughing, while Hikaru not-so-subtly hid behind his box of jelly beans from the movie’s poorly animated phantoms.

“This script is so awful. It’s like they’ve never heard people talk before,” Kimiko whispered through giggles.

“Y-Yeah,” Hikaru agreed. The only thing making the movie more bearable was the fact that Kimiko had a very cute laugh.

Kimiko turned to Hikaru, barely able to see him with the dim lighting. “Are you okay?” She asked, receiving a shaky nod in response. “What happened to your nerves of steel?”

“They’re on vacation right now!” Hikaru whispered. “…sorry. I don’t like ghosts.”

“So you thought it would be a good idea to go see a haunting movie because…why?”

“I don’t know. I thought it would suck!”

“It does suck.”

“The ghosts don’t!”

An old lady in front of them turned around and shushed them. They both mouthed a silent apology as the woman turned back to the screen, mumbling something under her breath.

Kimiko rolled her eyes, casting a look of sympathy Hikaru’s way. “Are you sure you want to sit through the rest of the movie?”

“May as well,” Hikaru sighed. “These tickets were expensive.”

“Seriously? _That’s_ your excuse?”

“Worth a shot,” Hikaru shrugged, shrinking back into his seat as the music warned of an upcoming jump scare.

Before the demon came out of the bushes, Kimiko gently grabbed Hikaru’s hand. The shock of the sudden contact distracted him from the jump scare, but still made his heart pound like crazy. He looked at Kimiko in the dim lights, the action onscreen fading into white noise.

Kimiko met his eyes and smiled sweetly, a smile never before directed at Hikaru. “It works whenever my sister gets scared,” she whispered. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“N-No, it’s fine,” Hikaru said. “Thanks.”

“Happy to help,” Kimiko replied, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze as she turned her attention back to the movie.

Their hands remained interlocked, even after the credits began rolling and the lights went up. Only when people started getting up out of their seats did Hikaru slide his hand out of Kimiko’s grasp.

“Well,” he said as he stood up to stretch, “that…didn’t go as I hoped.”

Kimiko smiled and stood up. “Our lives rarely go as we hope,” she said.

Hikaru laughed, “Yeah, no kidding…so, where to now?”

“You mean you don’t have this date planned down to a T?” Kimiko feigned shock. “I thought you were supposed to be treating me, Hitachiin?”

Hikaru rolled his eyes as they exited the theater. “I do have a plan, Honda,” he teased. “But I figured I’d ask where you wanted to go first.”

“Of course you did,” Kimiko teased back.

The pair settled into comfortable silence as they walked out into the mall. It was the first time since they met that there was no tension between them—at least, not the vicious, hate-filled kind.

“We could go get ice cream,” Kimiko suggested. “I know a really good place on the first floor. It’s been here forever.”

“You go to the mall for ice cream?” Hikaru asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Unlike you, I occasionally enjoy going out with the ‘commoners’, as you so politely call them,” she said.

“Your parents aren’t afraid of any common boys touching you?” Hikaru grinned, gently nudging her shoulder.

“They’re middle-class, not diseased.” Kimiko nudged him back as they came up on the ice cream shop. “I used to come here all the time with my mom and grandmother. It was…kind of our place.”

Hikaru gave the place a once-over. “It doesn’t look that special,” he stated bluntly.

“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it.” Kimiko walked them up to the counter, looking over all of the ice cream flavors as a wave of nostalgia washed over her.

Hikaru fondly watched Kimiko as she ran her eyes across the many flavors on display behind the glass. He remembered reading somewhere that you should take a girl on a date to an aquarium so you could see her eyes light up in wonder, watching her guard fall as she let herself be captivated by the majesty of it all.

This, for Hikaru, was their aquarium.

“Death by chocolate,” Kimiko said.

Hikaru popped out of his thoughts. “Excuse me??”

Kimiko giggled, holding up a waffle cone bowl filled with ice cream. “Death by chocolate. It’s my favorite flavor. I got it for us to share.”

“How do you know if I’d even like this flavor?”

“Because everyone likes chocolate, obviously,” she teased. “Humor me, at least.”

“Okay. But if it sucks, we’re playing a penalty game.” Hikaru took the other spoon from the bowl and scooped some of the ice cream into his mouth. “Holy shit!”

“Dude!” She whispered. “There are kids here!”

“Sorry,” he whispered, sneaking another bite from the bowl. “This is _so_ good.”

Kimiko smirked as she took her first bite. “Told you so.”

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t let it go to your head.”

“Never crossed my mind.”

For the next hour after, the pair walked around the mall in no particular direction. They talked, finished their ice cream, window shopped, and forgot for a moment that there was even a moment in time when they hated each other. A mutual feeling of comfort settled between them, even as the sun began to set and the date came to an end.

Hikaru dropped Kimiko off at her house just before dusk, and hoped that no one minded how late they were out.

“This was fun,” Kimiko said, brushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. “I honestly never thought I’d say this, but I’m glad I agreed to this.”

“Ye of little faith.” Hikaru laughed at Kimiko’s expression. "I’m…yeah, I’m glad you agreed, too.”

Uncertainty build between the teens as both wondered what to do next. After what felt like decades, Kimiko walked over to Hikaru to give him a gentle hug—short, simple, and sincere. Hikaru was blushing when she let go.

“…what, no kiss?” Hikaru said with a smirk, earning him a rough punch to the arm. “Okay, I guess I deserved that.”

“Yes, you did.” Kimiko opened the gate and turned to go back inside. “Goodnight, Hikaru,” she said, closing the metal barrier behind her.

“…goodnight, Kimiko.” She heard him say as she walked back into the house.

Kimiko couldn’t help the feeling in the pit of her chest; what she didn’t understand was what exactly she was feeling. Hikaru had finally warmed up to her, but she wasn’t sure if what she felt was actually romantic, or relief, or—even possibly—guilt. But what did she have to feel guilty about?

She didn’t have time to contemplate her confusion as she came face-to-face with her little brother.

“Did you have fun with your boyfriend?” Shin’ichi asked with a cunning sneer.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Kimiko retorted. “In case you’ve forgotten, I’m engaged.”

“I haven’t forgotten anything, unlike you.” The twelve-year-old walked up to her, leaning forward to make himself seem taller. “Dad doesn’t have to know about this, you know. I don’t have to say anything.”

“Good. Then don’t.”

“You honestly think it’s that easy? If you want me to keep my mouth shut, you’ll have to do something for me.”

“Like keep my mouth shut about your internet history?”

Shin’ichi winced, trying to hide his panic. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Buying stocks in other companies would make you a very disloyal son in dad’s eyes, wouldn’t it?”

“You can’t prove that!”

Kimiko held up her phone to show Shin’ichi screenshots of his browser history. “I can, actually. We’re even now, right?”

Shin’ichi silently left the room and stormed upstairs, letting Kimiko know that she’d won again.

“You should know by now,” she mumbled, tucking her phone away in her purse, “I play to win.”

* * *

 

“Kaoru, I’m home!” Hikaru called out as he walked into their bedroom.

Kaoru quickly tossed aside the book he was reading—half-reading, other half waiting anxiously for his brother to get home with news. “How’d it go?” he asked, sounding more curious than he intended.

“It went so well!” Hikaru said, flopping down beside Kaoru. “We didn’t fight at all, really. It was all play-fighting, like the kind that you and I do.”

Kaoru nodded, feeling an ache in his gut steadily grow. “That’s good. So, was I right? Do you like her?”

“…I don’t know.”

“What? What do you mean you don’t know?!”

“I mean I don’t know! I mean, it was nice, but it wasn’t really…romantic. It felt more like we just stopped hating each other, you know?”

“I think so.”

“So, yeah. I don’t know what’s gonna happen now. Even if we _did_ like each other, we probably couldn’t do anything about it. I mean, Kyouya-senpai’s pretty strict with that stupid rule. He’d probably kill us both if he found out.”

“True.” Kaoru felt bad that a swell of relief came over him, unsure of what it was for. “Why do you think he made up that rule anyway?”

Hikaru shrugged. “I don’t know. To keep the club from falling apart, I guess. I mean, the girls would freak out of one customer stole a host’s attention. You’ve seen how crazy it’s gotten with the Boss at all his customers.”

“But why can’t there be relationships between the hosts? I mean, they already want to see _us_ ‘get together’.”

“What’s your point?”

“Maybe Kyouya-senpai’s trying to…you know, keep himself from getting close to someone.”

Hikaru sat up with intrigue. “You think Kyouya-senpai’s got feelings for someone? _Shadow King_? Really?”

Kaoru sighed, allowing himself to fall back onto the mattress. “I don’t know, maybe. He’s so closed off, no one can really ever tell what he’s thinking. For all we know, he could just be trying to push down how he really feels to keep himself or other people from getting hurt.”

“…maybe. Anyway, I’m hungry.” Hikaru pushed himself off the bed, offering his hand to Kaoru. “Come on. I know you haven’t eaten yet.”

Smiling, Kaoru took his brother’s hand and let Hikaru lead


	12. Broken Bread

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, avid readers! We apologize once again for the long wait since the last update. Fortunately, we should be able to keep up with updates more frequently. We thank you all for sticking with us for so long! Please enjoy the update! :)

Usually, when one dreads an event, it will creep up much faster than expected—this was the case for the Honda/Ootori family dinner. Both teens involved noticed that time flew by between the weekend and Wednesday evening, the minutes pressed closer and closer together. By the time Wednesday came around, they’d almost forgotten, although duty—and their parents—would never allow that.

“All right,” Kyouya spoke into his phone as he stared out of his bedroom window, forcing himself to be distracted by the sunset. “I’ll see you later tonight.”

“Sure,” Kimiko said on the other end of the line. Her phone was on speaker as she did her makeup.

“By the way, wear something navy.”

“Navy?”

“It’s my father’s favorite color.”

“Are you wearing navy?”

“God, no. It doesn't look good on me.”

Kyouya let out a soft laugh. “My father likes violet.”

“Good to know.”

Kyouya ended the call. His eyes drifted to the neatly-pressed suit laying out on his bed. He’d been mentally preparing himself for this dinner all week. Business dinners with possible clients were one thing, but it felt like he was signing away his future to make his father happy.

‘Hasn’t that always been the goal?’ He slumped down onto his bed, his hands fidgeting against the comforter. ‘Pull it together, Ootori. This isn’t about you.’

‘A navy tie, perhaps,’ he thought. ‘Damn, I leant it to Tamaki…’

Tamaki, of course, was disappointed that the two would be absent from club activities, but he didn’t question it. Kyouya was disappointed by Tamaki’s indifference but remembered that it was a rare occasion for the energetic blond to stay out of other people’s business, and that stayed the distress—if only for a minute. He couldn’t allow himself to think of Tamaki, not on one of the most important nights of his life, especially with how new thoughts of his friend had been creeping up at the worst of times.

“ _ Kyouya, your best friend is calling _ .” Kyouya’s head spun to Tamaki’s voice. The blush in his cheeks only grew when he figured out that the noise was coming from his phone, Tamaki’s picture illuminated on the screen.  “ _ I am Kyouya’s best friend!” Kyouya’s phone sang, “We go out to get ice cream. I am Kyouya’s best friend!...Kyouya- _ ”

Unable to bring himself to be upset, Kyouya answered the phone. “Tamaki?”

“Kyouya! Hey…how are you?” Tamaki asked.

“…I’m fine. Did you change my ringtone?”

Kyouya felt Tamaki’s guilt from the other end of the phone. “Only mine,” Tamaki said cheerfully. “What do you think? I’ve been taking lessons.”

“Not enough, obviously.”

Tamaki gasped. “How dare you! My teacher said I have the voice of a thousand angels!”

“He’s an excellent liar, then. What if someone”—my father—“heard it?”

“I’m sure they’d think it was very funny.”

“I’m not keeping it,” Kyouya said, though his words didn’t hold much weight.

“You’re so mean to me!” Tamaki pouted.

‘Never to you,’ Kyouya thought. “Is there a reason you called me? I told you, I was going to be busy tonight.”

“Yeah, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” Tamaki said. “Are you…actually busy?”

“Of course I am. I have no reason to lie.”

“Unless you did.”

“But I’m not. I am busy.”

“Busy with what?”

He’d never hear the end of it without some explanation. “Although I would usually tell people that it's none of their business, I do feel guilty for missing this afternoon’s activities. My father decided that it was about time I get more hands-on training.”

Even through silence, Tamaki’s disappointment was palpable and hurt more than Kyouya expected. “I see,” Tamaki said. “I’m sorry, Kyouya. I shouldn’t have pried.”

“Don’t-...don't do that.” Knowing Tamaki for years came with the advantage of knowing when his guilt was genuine. “Look, I’m really tired right now. Can we talk about this tomorrow?”

“That’s actually...what I wanted to talk to you about. You’ve been acting different lately.”

“Different how?”

“Well, you’ve been a lot more...mean lately. I know you don’t like people getting too involved in your life, but you don’t even talk to me anymore.”

“Because there’s nothing to talk about.”

“What about today? You didn't tell me about that.”

“That’s different-”

“Or a couple weeks ago when I found you early in the morning. You looked scared!”

“Tamaki-”

“Why won’t you just tell me what’s wrong? Are you in trouble?”

‘Of a sort, yes.’ “No.” Kyouya felt his pulse rising and forced himself to calm down.

“Then what’s wrong? Kyo, please. You’re my best friend, and I want to help you.”

“Tamaki, I need to go. I’ll text you later tonight if I can. If not, we’ll talk tomorrow.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

“Okay...good luck tonight, Kyouya. I believe in you!”

“Thanks, Tamaki.” A small smile grew on his lips. “Bye.”

“Talk to later Kyo!!!!!”

Kyouya hung up after a moment of hesitation. ‘Navy blue…’ He could get through this one night. ‘A small addition. Nothing too flashy.’ Perhaps Tamaki’s call was just what he needed. Kyouya grabbed his suit off the bed and began to change, swapping out his white dress shirt for a navy one with pleats down the front. Once pressed and prepared, he looked at himself in the nearest mirror.

“I believe I can do this.”

With that small phrase, he was able to open the door and make his way down the hall. The maids were already bustling about as they finished up the last few details. Everything had to be perfect.

“You don’t have to be nervous,” Fuyumi said from behind Kyouya, putting a hand on his shoulder. “It’ll be okay.”

Kyouya glanced back at her. “I’m not nervous.”

“You can’t get that past me, Kyouya. I have sister-senses,” she said with a wink.

“I know that’s not a real thing, Fuyumi.” Kyouya checked the clock on the wall, watching the seconds tick forward meticulously. The Honda family would be there in any minute.

“Which just proves that you need to loosen up,” Fuyumi said. “This is scary, I get it. Finding out I was marrying someone I knew nothing about almost made me reconsider my life.”

“This is different. I know Kimiko.”

“Wait, you do?” Fuyumi gasped. “That’s cheating! What’s she like? I heard that all the Honda children are really pretty.”

“Yes, because that’s what really matters when you’re getting married. As long as the bride is beautiful-”

Fuyumi didn’t waste a second to smack her brother across the chest. “Don’t be mean!” She craned her neck to glance down the hall. “So, do you like her?”

Kyouya’s body hitched before answering, “Yes. She’s a very intelligent girl. I have no reason not to like her.”

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

“I’m not in love with her, Fuyumi, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Why?”

“Because I hardly know her.”

“Is that the only reason?”

Their father’s throat clearing interrupted Fuyumi, much to Kyouya’s relief.

“The Hondas will be here shortly,” Yoshio said. “I trust you will be on your best behavior, Fuyumi.”

“Of course, father,” she nodded.

Yoshio’s eyes went to Kyouya. “You know what I expect from you.”

“Of course, father,” Kyouya said.

“Good.”

Kyouya silently wished his brothers could have been at the dinner. At least he would have had a buffer between himself and his father. Then again, they were rarely if ever on his side, so perhaps it was better that they were absent. He was quickly pulled out of his thoughts by the ring of the doorbell.

The Ootori’s stood silent for a moment. Yoshio shot a look at Kyouya, and Kyouya briskly walked to open the door for their guests.

‘Great start,’ Kyouya cursed himself.

In the doorway stood the entirety of the Honda family--Toshiaki, his beautiful wife Asami, and their three children. Kimiko stood in-between her younger siblings.

“Welcome,” Yoshio said as the Hondas came inside. “We’re very glad you could join us tonight.”

“Of course,” Toshiaki said, removing his coat. “We would have had the dinner in our home, but I’m having the kitchen remodeled for my wife.”

“Amazing what months of begging can do,” Asami half-joked.

Fuyumi’s forced laugh only furthered the tension. They were only two minutes into the evening, and already things were going downhill; and the blame would be placed on Kyouya, of course.

“Would you like a tour of the house, Honda-san?” Kyouya asked with a light smile. It was times like this when his experience in the host club came in handy. He could use his natural charm to his advantage to make up for just about any social speed bump.

“That sounds like a wonderful idea. Why don’t you take Kimiko with you? That way you two can get to know each other even more.” Asami pitched with a thumbs-up.

“I’m sorry but I don’t want them alone together just yet,” Toshiaki said with a stern look on his face. “Why don’t we have Emiko and Shin’ichi go with them? They can keep their sister company.”

“All right,” Yoshio said. “Kyouya, go ahead and take our guests around. We will discuss some business and call you over once dinner is ready.”

Kyouya gave a firm nod towards his father out of respect and motioned towards Kimiko and her siblings so they would follow him. “We won’t stray too far, Father,” Kyouya said as he led his fiancé and her family down the hall.

“Aren’t you going to introduce yourself?” Emiko asked Kyouya, glued to Kimiko’s side.

“He probably doesn’t care,” Shin’ichi said as he took in the house. “This is simply a business deal to him, right Ootori?”

Kyouya didn’t bat an eye before responding, “Even if that were the case, Honda Shin’ichi, I make it a mission to know my clients on a personal level.” He looked back at Shin’ichi with his host grin. “Being impersonal has never served anyone well, least of all me.”

Kimiko would later deny the giggle that left her lips.

Shin’ichi gaped like a dead fish at the retort. “W-Well,” he cleared his throat, “aren’t you just charming?”

“He’s really charming,” Emiko said, “and he dresses nice.”

Kyouya smiled at the young girl. “Thank you, Emiko-chan.”

“Are you sure you like girls?”

“Emiko!” Kimiko cried.

Shin’ichi chuckled behind his hand. “It is a fair question.”

“Regardless,” Kyouya cleared his throat, biting back embarrassment, “I think it’s hardly appropriate for you to be making accusations without evidence. Just as well, your father wouldn’t be happy with you insulting your future brother-in-law, would he?”

Shin’ichi couldn’t find the words to reply.

Emiko turned her big black eyes back to Kyouya. “...so, you do like girls?”

“Yes,” Kyouya easily replied. “Of course I do. I like your sister, don’t I?”

“You do?” Emiko asked.

Kyouya nodded, kneeling to the girl’s height. “I like your sister very much. She is truly incredible.”

“So, she’s not just a means to an end?”

“Who told you that?”

“Shin-shin.” Emiko pointed to her older brother.

Kimiko rolled her eyes. “Emiko, what have I told you about anything Shin’ichi says?”

“It’s usually stupid.”

Kyouya smirked as Shin’ichi grew more and more irritated.

“Where is your bathroom?” The boy asked, his arms crossed over his chest.

“To your left, at the end of the hall,” Kyouya said. “Don’t be gone too long.”

Shin’ichi left in a huff, muttering to himself the whole way down.

“So,” Kyouya said, turning back to the two sisters, “shall we continue the tour?”

The three of them walked further into the house and upstairs. Kyouya showed them an array of paintings and art pieces his father had collected from various business trips and company deals. For a moment, they stopped in front of a large window and admired the night view of the garden in the backyard.

Shin’ichi rejoined the group when they came upon the Ootori’s generously-sized library. Emiko dragged her brother over to one of the larger shelves, leaving Kyouya and Kimiko alone for a moment.

“Your siblings are interesting,” Kyouya said.

Kimiko sighed with a light smile. “They are...unique, to say the least. Shin’ichi is definitely his father’s son.”

Kyouya nodded, staring at the boy in question as he climbed up the shelf’s ladder. “Your parents have a terrible sense of humor.”

“Hmm?” Kimiko turned to Kyouya. “Oh, right. That’s my father’s sick sense of humor. My mother...she had no part in picking his name.”

“Did your mother have any part in Emiko?” Kyouya asked.

“Yes,” Kimiko replied, clenching her fist at her side. “My father is a bastard, but he isn’t...he isn’t that cruel, at least not that I know of.”

“Which is saying a lot.”

Kimiko grinned.

Kyouya sighed, folding his hand in front of his chest as he watched his future brother and sister-in-law piddle through books he hadn’t looked at in years.

“Where is your mother?” Kimiko asked, her eyes trained on her little sister.

Taken back by the question, Kyouya turned to Kimiko with uncertainty in his eyes. “I don’t know,” he said quietly. “She has been absent for a few years now. Father doesn’t like to talk about it.”

Noting the tone in his voice, Kimiko gently took Kyouya’s hand and squeezed it. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it would make you uncomfortable.”

“It’s not that. No one has asked me about my mother since-...” Kyouya sighed and looked down at his and Kimiko’s joined hands.

Kimiko turned to look at her fiancé. “Kyouya-”

“Dinner is ready!” A maid said from the doorway.

Kyouya gently pulled his now-trembling hand out of Kimiko’s grasp. “Thank you,” he said to the maid. “We’ll be in shortly.”

The maid nodded with a smile and walked away.

“Finally,” Shin’ichi groaned, walking out ahead of the others. “Your kitchen staff is slow here.”

“It’s only been ten minutes, you glutton,” Kimiko said. She took Emiko’s hand and walked out of the library.

“That’s no excuse for slow workers. Or maybe they’re keeping us waiting on purpose,” Shin’ichi said. “Either way, I just want to eat.”

“It would help if you were going in the right direction,” Kyouya said, leading the Honda sisters to the dining room.

Shin’ichi frowned and slowly turned the other way, trailing behind the group.

* * *

The dinner that followed was less uncomfortable than Kyouya and Kimiko thought it would be, although their expectations were quite low to start out with. Fuyumi and Asami made conversation at the far end of the table while Yoshio and Toshiaki talked about their most recent business deals in as much detail as was allowed. Shin’ichi remained quiet throughout most of the dinner, knowing better than to attempt tripping up Kyouya again. Emiko slowly ate, her big eyes glancing between the two different conversations between the adults.

“How much of this does she actually retain?” Kyouya quietly asked Kimiko, glancing over at the curious eight-year-old to her left.

Kimiko looked down at her sister with a knowing grin before turning forward again. “More than people think.” She softly slurped down an oyster from her plate. “I have a feeling she’ll grow up to be smarter than me some day.”

“Does that scare you?”

“Not at all. Although it certainly scares Shin’ichi.”

Kyouya huffed out a laugh.

“Is something funny, Kyouya?” Yoshio asked. All eyes suddenly turned to the dark-haired teens.

Kyouya cleared his throat, “Nothing, father. I was telling Kimiko about something that happened with Tamaki earlier this afternoon.”

“The Suoh boy?” Asami asked, her cheeks tinted red as the wine in her glass. “I’ve heard interesting things about him. Gossip mostly, but I don’t doubt some of it to be true.”

“I don’t much care for his family,” Toshiaki frowned. “Much too lax. If I were in his father’s position, I would have left the boy to rot in France with his mother. It’s the noble thing to do.”

“Regardless of your opinion of him,” Kyouya said, clutching his chopsticks the slightest bit tighter, “Tamaki Suoh has more than proven himself worthy to be the heir to his family.”

Toshiaki scoffed at that. “He is their last resort. That’s as if saying a rusted bicycle is a worthy substitute for a car.”

“Why don’t we change the subject?” Kimiko offered. “Mother, I think now would be the perfect time to give Ootori-san his gift.”

Asami let out a noise of agreement past the rim of her glass. “Of course, I almost forgot,” she said. She reached into her purse and pulled out a rectangle wrapped in glossy gold paper. “Kimiko wanted you to have this as a sort of ‘Welcome to the family’ gift!”

Yoshio took the gift with a curt bow of his head and unwrapped it with precision, leaving almost no mess. He tore away the last of the wrapping to reveal a sterling silver picture frame. Inside was a portrait of the Honda family, smiling to create the illusion of a nuclear unit.

“I figured it would look lovely in your home office,” Kimiko said, gauging Yoshio’s reaction. “If you don’t like it, I can take it back.”

Yoshio shook his head, giving Kimiko an out-of-character smile. “It’s very lovely. Thank you, Kimiko.”

Kimiko smiled back at him, reaching under the table to lightly squeeze Kyouya’s hand. “You’re very welcome, sir.”

* * *

“I have never seen my father smile like that before,” Kyouya said as he helped Kimiko put her coat on. “You do know he’ll probably just put it in a drawer somewhere, right?”

“And show disrespect to his future family? I don’t think so.” Kimiko smiled and adjusted her cuffs. “Still, the gesture was all that counts.”

“It was nice, albeit unnecessary,” he said. “…why did you really give him the picture frame?”

Kimiko grinned and crossed her arms. “Can’t I just be kind to my future father-in-law?”

“Were it anyone else, I would say yes.”

“You give me so little credit.”

“Kimiko,” Toshiaki called with a snap of his fingers.

“Coming, father!” Kimiko called back. She turned to Kyouya. “I suppose I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I suppose you shall,” Kyouya said. Gently, he took her hand and pressed his lips to the back of it. “Until the next ordeal.”

“Oh, I’ll be waiting with bated breath.” Kimiko swiped her hand back from Kyouya and followed her family through the front door.

Silence fell shortly after the door closed. Yoshio stood walked away from the entryway and back toward Fuyumi and Kyouya. After a curt nod to his children, Yoshio walked away to his bedroom. Neither of the Ootori children breathed until they heard the echo of the door shut.

“Phew,” Fuyumi sighed with a nervous giggle. “Well, they seem nice. A bit…dysfunctional, but still really nice.”

Kyouya nodded. “They are nice. Though the son thinks too much of himself.”

“With a name like ‘Shin’ichi’, anyone would get a big head. I mean, naming your child 'true first son'? That’s just cruel!”

‘Fits the patriarch, then,’ Kyouya thought, carefully removing his tie.

“It’s a bit weird, though, isn’t it?”

“What is?”

“I mean…you and Kimiko look so similar.  _ Very  _ similar. It’s almost as if she’s a carbon copy of you. You’re practically marrying yourself. You’re either going to be in bliss or drive each other crazy!”

“I suppose I have that to look forward to, then.” Kyouya removed his blazer tentatively, looking back at Fuyumi after a moment. “…do you remember our mother at all?”

Fuyumi frowned at the question, turning to Kyouya with concern and confusion in her eyes. “Mom? I…I haven’t thought about her in a while. Why? Is all this family talk making you sentimental?”

Kyouya sighed. “Never mind,” he said, shaking his head. “Good night, Fuyumi.”

“Kyouya, wait!” Fuyumi stopped Kyouya with a hand on his shoulder. “…to tell you the truth, I don’t remember too much about Mom either.”

“Of course you don’t.” Kyouya regretted his words as Fuyumi drew her hand away. “That wasn’t what I-”

“It’s fine,” Fuyumi said with a sad smile. “…from what I remember, she was a lot like you.”

“Like me?”

Fuyumi nodded. “Too good for Dad.”

Kyouya was too in shock by the comment to stop Fuyumi as she left through the front door. What was he supposed to say to a comment like that? How was he “too good” for his father? Even if that were true, that still told him nothing about his mother. Kyouya felt himself getting emotional whiplash and decided to turn in for the night.

After changing into pajamas and brushing his teeth, he noticed that he had four unread text messages from earlier on in the night.

**8:12 pm, From: Hikaru H. –** **_Have the girls tried on their dresses for 2morrow yet?_ **

**8:31 pm, From: Tamaki S. –** **_Is the dinner over yet? Hope it’s going well!!! :)_ **

**9:05 pm, From: Tamaki S. –** **_Pls call me when you’re done!!_ **

**9:37 pm, From: Tamaki S. –** **_Mama!!! How’d it go??? Call me!!_ **

Kyouya smiled and the last three messages, imagining Tamaki not-so-patiently waiting up all night for a response. It was sweet; annoying, but still sweet.

‘Is it weird if I think it’s sweet?’ Kyouya thought. He shook off the thought as he messaged Tamaki back.

**9:58 pm, To: Tamaki S. –** **_It went well. I’m tired. I’ll call you tomorrow._ **

Kyouya plugged his phone in to charge on the night stand before taking off his glasses and settling into bed. All things considered, the evening could have gone much worse. At least he now had a better idea of his fiancée’s family dynamic, the details of which would benefit him so much more later down the line. But he refused to think about it too much as he closed his eyes and buried his face in his pillow.

From the corner of the room, he heard Tamaki’s text alert go off and let the soft tone of his best friend’s subpar singing lull him to sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. All comments and Kudos are much appreciated!


End file.
